May 14, 2008
I’ve tried one other Saranac beer, and it was the Pumpkin Ale that they produce for the Fall season and I remember that was pretty good. So, when I saw the Saranac Caramel Porter on the shelf I grabbed it to try for a beer review! After drinking the Saranac Caramel Porter, I’m really starting to look forward to trying their other brews. The Caramel Porter was really good!
To me, the Caramel Porter is a kind of Fall or Winter style beer that might be best enjoyed while watching football or hanging around one of those bonfires in a field on a chilly Fall night. However, my opportunity to try a Caramel Porter came in mid-May, right after I finished moving the lawn! Life could certainly be worse, and I often make these type of sacrifices for my love of science and spreading beer information!
The caramel Porter has a deep, deep amber color, and makes a rich-colored head that leaves a little bit of creamy lacing on the glass. Once poured into my testing glass, I immediately noticed the sweet aroma of caramel, which was quite nice. It smelled like it would be a good beer.
To quote the bottle, the Saranac Porter has “… a smooth, yet slightly bitter, roasted flavor.” and to look for “hints of caramel” in the beer. I couldn’t describe it better myself! The caramel flavor is subtle, but it is definitely “in” the beer - not just some weird caramel aftertaste. I think Porters are what people might consider as “heavy” beer, and it did feel a little heavier than the more watery-styled Lagers I’ve been recently sampling - but I guess it had more of a medium sort of mouthfeel rather than all-out heavy. Still, maybe a little off season for late spring, and while it was extremely enjoyable, it was not refreshing considering my circumstance!
I typically like these kinds of beers anyway, but this one was different with the Caramel flavor, aroma, and overall quality. I can’t think of a bad thing to say about the Saranac Caramel Porter! Go try one and let us know. What did you think?
Rating: 
Enjoy & Share - Push our buttons!
These icons link to social bookmarking sites where readers can share and discover new web pages.
Posted in 4 Star Reviews, American Beer Reviews, Brew Reviews 
1 Comment »
May 12, 2008
For The Brew Club’s last Cinco de Mayo Mexican Beer reviews, I cracked open and tried Pacifico. I’ve heard some good things about Pacifico, and many people rave about it, but like anything else there are those who dislike it and rate it poorly.
Beer it seems, is really a matter or personal preference! To each his (or her) own! Here’s my impressions of Pacifico!
My first impression was very positive. This beer, to me, had a truly distinct smell. At first I thought it was kind of flowery smelling, and then I thought clover for some reason, and then finally it hit me! Honey! This Pacifico beer had a distinct honey smell! Cool!
I was intrigued at this point and didn’t really look at all the clarity and bubbles and the foam produced, I just wanted to taste it! The Pacifico Mexican beer was smooth, and left a nice honey-aftertaste. Some people I spoke to didn’t think it even tasted like beer - I did, it just had this cool honey thing going for it. I liked it a lot!
I would not say that Pacifico is a ‘honey-flavored beer”, even though the color strongly resembles golden-honey,so you don’t have to worry about that. Pacifico does seem to have a bit of sweetness that really sets it apart from other Mexican beers I’ve tried.
Quickly wrapping up this review of Pacifico beer, I would definitely try it again, and I would recommend that you try it too if you haven’t. Of the Mexican beers I have tasted and reviewed recently, Pacifico is my favorite, beating out the Negra Modelo as the “Best Mexican Beer” for Cinco de Mayo - or any time you feel like having a quality Mexican beer!
Rating: 
Enjoy & Share - Push our buttons!
These icons link to social bookmarking sites where readers can share and discover new web pages.
Posted in Brew Reviews, Mexican Beer Reviews, Three Star Reviews No Comments »
May 11, 2008
Hot on the heels of Cinco de Mayo is an event called American Craft Beer Week. Its held annually, and this year it is being held from May 12 to May 18. The week-long event was even recognized by the United States Congress in House Resolution 753!
Seems like a big to-do - in 2007, over 150 craft-brewers participated in the events. If you are interested in learning more about American Craft Beer Week, check out the link above to learn more, and if you are lucky, you will be able to find a local brewery that is participating in American Craft Beer week near you! Maybe I’ll be able to get to the Otter Creek Brewery in Vermont to check them out!
I wonder if Hillary will be at any of the events?
Enjoy & Share - Push our buttons!
These icons link to social bookmarking sites where readers can share and discover new web pages.
Posted in American Beer Reviews, Other Stuff No Comments »
May 7, 2008
So its almost Ocho de Mayo (I forgot how 7 is said in Spanish) and I’m still trying to finish all of the Mexican beers that the Brew Club exchanged last week for the Cinco de Mayo beer reviews!
I think its better actually to slow down the beer reviewing schedule. Its hard to write something useful and coherent after drinking some of this stuff!
Today’s Mexican beer review is on Dos Equis Amber beer.
I’ve actually never tried anything from Dos XX, the Lager is still on deck for a review-maybe this weekend! This beer comes in a brown glass bottle, and as the label suggests, the beer is a nice amber color. Pouring the Dos XX Amber into my official testing-glass, I found that the Dos Equis Amber generated quite a bit of “bubbling-action” (my technical term) - more than the other beers I’ve recently sampled. Maybe this would be the Champagne of Mexican beers?
Not to be un-disappointed, the Dos XX Amber didn’t really have much of a distinctive smell in the glass, kinda plain I guess and certainly nothing to write home about. The taste was equally unremarkable. It tasted OK, but again very much average.
It was a little sharp on the tongue at first, and then the flavor quickly mellowed and then - nothing. The Dos XX Amber didn’t leave a weird feel or anything in my mouth, I’m not banging it like that at all - it just didn’t impress.
Dos Equis amber really didn’t push any buttons for me. In the future, I might order it at a restaurant if there was nothing else, and someone was buying for me!
Rating:
Enjoy & Share - Push our buttons!
These icons link to social bookmarking sites where readers can share and discover new web pages.
Posted in Brew Reviews, Mexican Beer Reviews, One Star Reviews No Comments »
May 4, 2008
Well, I wasn’t able to review all six Mexican beers before Cinco de Mayo, so I’ll have to keep chuggin’ so that there is a comprehensive review database of Mexican beers here for Cinco de Mayo ‘09!
This review is of Negra Modelo beer - Visually, this is the most unusual of the Mexican beers I have reviewed or seen so far. It comes in a stubby 12oz. bottle and has a neat golden foil wrapper. The bottle is a brown color as well, and overall it makes for a very different look. Quite fancy indeed!
Pouring the Negra Modello into my testing glass (an actual beer glass this time!) created a little bit of a head, and as I swirled the beer around the glass a bit it left more lacing on the glass than any of its Mexican counterparts I’ve previously sampled.
It smelled a little less “beery” to me, and I suppose the correct description would be that Negra Modela smelled less of hops than the other Mexican brews did. It is a “Dark Beer” as pronounced on the bottle, and it looks to be a perfectly clear golden-brown color as I poured it into my glass. A nice change from the pale-yellow beers I’ve been sampling as of late! 
My first impression of this beer is that it’s good! Negra Modelo was not too bitter, and seemed to have a more complex flavor than I was expecting. Overall it was a quite nice beer to drink. It was not heavy, and it didn’t leave a weird feel in my mouth, or an overly “beery” aftertaste. Negra Modelo seems to be a little bit of a more complex beer to me - more mellow, smooth even.
Negra Modelo so far is the best of the Mexican beers I’ve tried, and if I had another one available at the moment, I would be drinking it! I would definitely try it again, buy it again, and if you’re looking for something different from Mexico to celebrate Cinco de Mayo with - give the Negra Modelo a try!
Rating:
Enjoy & Share - Push our buttons!
These icons link to social bookmarking sites where readers can share and discover new web pages.
Posted in Brew Reviews, Mexican Beer Reviews, Three Star Reviews No Comments »
May 3, 2008
This was my first experience with a beer from Victory Brewing from Pennsylvania. I must say overall I was very impressed with the Victory Prima pilsner - even though this isn’t my favorite style of beer.
The beer had a nice golden color which was slightly warmer or darker than beers I had been reviewing lately - and it was a little less than perfectly clear in the glass. Prima didn’t didn’t seem overly carbonated, and small lingering head was created in the glass, and some decent lacing also remained as the beer was slowly transferred from the glass to my digestive system.
The smell was complicated, and you could tell this beer was different, even before drinking it. The label talks about “European Hops” and “German Malts” being used in the brewing process - and maybe that has something to do with the smell og the beer. I’m not sure exactly what it is, but it had a very nice smell that indicated to me that the Prima would be something different. So how did it taste? Does the interesting aroma live up to its expectations?
One word. Yes! Prima pilsner is good! The Victory Prima had a complicated flavor, a little bitter but not unpleasent in the least. It goes down very smoothly and has a kind of aftertaste that really lingered for quite some time. I’m not a technical beer reviewer (gee, really?) so its hard to really explain the complexity and smoothness of this brew - but that’s just what it is. Nice job, Victory. I guess all those German ingredients do make a difference!
If someone were to ask me what I thought of VIctory’s Prima brew, I would tell them that is is definitely worth a try, and I would recommend the Victory Prima without hesitation. If it happens to be on tap someplace - go for it. If you see it on the shelf in your favorite store, give it a try! I don’t think you’ll be disappointed.
I’m a bit of a tough reviewer, and while this beer is really good, it still didn’t overwhelm me with the urge for a second bottle - which is part of my internal, completely biased and unscientific rating system. So I’m going to give the Victory Prima Pilsner 3 out of 5, which really is a pretty good rating from me!
Rating:
Enjoy & Share - Push our buttons!
These icons link to social bookmarking sites where readers can share and discover new web pages.
Posted in American Beer Reviews, Brew Reviews, Three Star Reviews No Comments »
May 1, 2008
Well, I can’t say I’m on a roll here with the beer reviews lately! The second installment of out Cinco de Mayo beer-review fest is the Mexican beer Tecate.
Maybe I’m just getting tired of drinking and writing about essentially the same type of beer over and over, but as it happens, that’s what I have to do!
Tecate beer comes in a brown bottle, which distinguishes it from Corona, and there are a few interesting theories as to why it comes in a brown bottle instead of a clear one. One theory is that sun is the enemy of beer. Clear glass offers no protection to the beer inside, while brown glass does. Is this true? I don’t know, but it sounds good to me. The other theory is so that one does not see the organisms that dwell in the water from which the beer is created. Mmmmmmmm. Organisms. I don’t think tha’t true either - but hey, its out there.
Opening the beer of course, produced no Genie, and it poured into the glass producing a very slight, rapidly
disappearing head with minimal lacing on the glass. There was nothing interesting in the smell department either. It has the typical golden-yellow color that Corona had, and for the most-part tasted to me just like Corona.
I would imagine that if you wanted to save a little money, you could get a lime, (or artificial lime flavor for even more savings) squeeze it into the Tecate, and have a less expensive alternative to Corona. The same could also be said without using the lime. I think the Tecate has a slightly more bitter taste that lingers and lingers in the mouth than the Corona does.
Tecate seems to be your basic, basic beer. After drinking it, I would not buy it unless my goal was to get drunk - I would rather drink almost anything else I think - even something with amoebas in it. There was no enjoyment in consuming this beer, and as you may be able to detect, it is rather hard writing this review. Sorry, but beer should be enjoyable, and the Tecate just aint!
Rating:
Enjoy & Share - Push our buttons!
These icons link to social bookmarking sites where readers can share and discover new web pages.
Posted in Brew Reviews, Mexican Beer Reviews, One Star Reviews 1 Comment »
May 1, 2008
OK, so this is my first official review for The Brew Club, and let me just start off with the disclaimer! By no means am I am an expert on beer… I just enjoy drinking it. So the below statements are just what I think about the new Bud Light Lime. OK, with that said… Let’s continue with the review.
As far as 2 weeks ago, I started seeing more and more commercials for Bud Light Lime (I guess it’s Bud Light’s answer to Miller’s Chill). As a Bud Light drinker, I was pretty excited about trying this beer. I mean, come on… Who doesn’t like beer with a slight hint of lime? Blue Moon has lime flavored beer too! So here with go (drum roll please….)
At first glance I like the design of the Bud Light Lime bottle. It’s clear and the Lime logo makes it look kind of fun and refreshing. I think they’re definitely going with the summer feel here. Coincidental that they’re releasing this beer in early May for the start of spring/summer and the BBQ/Summer Party season? I think not…
I open it up and I smell a very, very slight hint of lime, not too overpowering though. I pour the beer into my small glass (sorry no beer glass either), and it produces very little foam. My glass is pretty small, so it doesn’t fit the whole beer in it. As I take my first drink of the Bud Light Lime, I can definitely taste the lime in the beer. It’s almost as if the lime is stronger than the beer itself because the taste of the beer isn’t very strong; the lime almost overpowers it a bit.. If I had to describe the taste as best as I can, I would say that’s it tastes sort of like Sprite/7Up with a kick.
Also what I have just noticed as I take a closer look at the bottle, is that each bottle of Bud Light Lime has 4.2% Alc./Vol. per 12 oz. So, I guess that explains the Sprite/7Up taste with a kick. It’s not a very strong beer at all, and for the cost $6.49 per six-pack, I definitely think you can get more bang for your buck. To be honest, I’m a bit disappointed with the Bud Light Lime product, it’s not bad, but I was expect something a little bit more, and it’s a pretty normal light lime tasting beer. I think this is a pretty decent BBQ/summer beer if you’re trying to keep things light at the party. But overall, I give this beer about 2 stars.
Rating:
What do you think of Bud Light Lime?
Bam! My first official review! Thank you! Thank you! Hold the applause please… Hahahaha, just kidding. =]
Enjoy & Share - Push our buttons!
These icons link to social bookmarking sites where readers can share and discover new web pages.
Posted in American Beer Reviews, Brew Reviews, Lime Flavored Beer Reviews, Two Star Reviews 2 Comments »
April 29, 2008
Corona is one of those beers that for some reason, everyone thinks of when it gets warm out. Another one of those “summer beers” that people take to the BBQ or whatever. Why is that?
Up here in the often frigid Northeast, nobody thinks about Corona after Labor Day. It just isn’t the type of beer you have while sitting in front of the fireplace!
Our purpose here though, is to determine if Corona is simply a success due to the marketing, or is it really something special that you might consider enjoying in the middle of January?
Our first-annual Cinco de Mayo Mexican-Beer Review will sample several popular Mexican-made beers, and here’s what I think of Corona.
In the clear bottle, Corona is a very pale, golden-yellow color. The pictures you see seem to be a little off as it looks somewhat darker in the images than my eye perceived it. I think it might have something to do with the clear glass and the brownish table the bottle was on when I shot the picture. I’ll have to work on that!
The Corona “package”, much like the Landshark package, says to me - “summer beer” when looking at it. The second thing most people seem to associate with Corona, is a nice fresh piece of lime to add to it. Not easy to find in December! The power of marketing! I mean, am I wrong about that?
Opening the Corona bottle was completely uneventful. I’m not sure why I keep expecting something exciting to happen when I open beer bottles, but I suppose that one day I hope that maybe a Genie will pop out of one and grant me a few wishes. What would I wish for? World peace? A cure for Simple Chronic Halitosis? Nah! I’m already a Chick-magnet, so I’d probably wish to become 25 feet tall, (or taller) or possibly have the ability to stick upside down to ceilings like a fly. That would be cool.
Anyway. 
The Corona had a little (very little) carbonation to it as I poured it into my standard iced-tea testing glass, and it made almost no head of foam whatsoever, and there was no lacing on the glass to speak of. It was just about the flattest beer I had ever seen in my 25 years.
Drinking it revealed a slightly carbonated tingle (very slight) and it didn’t present any kind of interesting flavor at all. It wasn’t heavy feeling, and it didn’t leave an aftertaste really. It was almost like beer-flavored water. Rather unremarkable.
Overall, the Corona Extra tasted “extra-regular” in every sense of the word. Corona isn’t bad, it just didn’t do anything to stimulate or interest me and it just doesn’t have character which might make it a more distinguishable beer from others. Maybe that’s what the lime is for?
Would I recommend it? Sure, it’s good at the BBQ with a slice of lime and some friends during the Summertime, just like the marketers tell me.
Rating:
Enjoy & Share - Push our buttons!
These icons link to social bookmarking sites where readers can share and discover new web pages.
Posted in Brew Reviews, Mexican Beer Reviews, One Star Reviews 1 Comment »
April 28, 2008
I know this has nothing at all to do with beer, beer reviews or anything else related to beer. I just wanted to write a little post - and recommend wholeheartedly the Cleaker 2.1 theme created by Adam Walker Cleaveland.
I’m not a WordPress expert in any sense of the word, but I think that our BrewClub Beer Review Site is coming along nicely, mainly as a result of this excellent WordPress theme.
A few things about it stand out.
First, it just looks professional. Out of the box, this theme is just fine. Code is easily edited if you want to change your header image, fonts, colors or whatever else. For now, I left it alone save the header image.
Second, the Cleaker theme is Wigitized, which makes doing all that other “stuff” that much easier, especially for non-coders like me. Thanks!
Third, Adam is a great guy. While he does not have the time to provide support directly, he has emailed me regarding questions about the theme which, I think, is very, very classy. Other users at the Promusings blog help one another out as well - which is nice.
So there you go. I think if you are looking for a very nice 3 column wigitized Wordpress theme, give Cleaker a test-drive. I think you’ll like it!
I give it a 5 star rating!!!
Rating:
Enjoy & Share - Push our buttons!
These icons link to social bookmarking sites where readers can share and discover new web pages.
Posted in Other Reviews No Comments »
April 26, 2008
Cinco de Mayo is not Mexican Independence day as many would believe - nor is it an American Holiday. Mexico declared Independence from Spain in 1810, while Cinco de Mayo is a celebration of a great Mexican victory over the overwhelming French forces of Napoleon III on May 5, 1862.
The French had come to Mexico (invaded really) earlier in that year, and apparently the French had ideas of creating a new Empire in Mexico, to be ruled by the Hapsburg Prince Maximilian. Considering that the United States was involved in its own Civil War at the time, it didn’t seem likely that the biggest threat to the French in the region (the Americans) would be an issue.
It is interesting history, but In a nutshell the Mexican forces crushed the French at the Battle of Puebla on May 5, 1862. Over the years, Cinco de Mayo has become something of a celebration of Mexican heritage here in in the United States, even though most of us have no idea what the day is really about in an Historical sense.
What does this have to do with beer? Well, TheBrewClub thought it would be a great time to do an all-Mexican beer exchange in honor of Cinco de Mayo, and hopefully some comparative reviews will be posted here for everyone to enjoy!
- Pacifico is this reviewers favorite Mexican Beer!
Stay-tuned for more Mexican Beer reviews!
Enjoy & Share - Push our buttons!
These icons link to social bookmarking sites where readers can share and discover new web pages.
Posted in Mexican Beer Reviews, Other Stuff No Comments »
April 24, 2008
So it seems that Blue Moon Brewing Company won a bunch of gold medals at this year’s World Beer Cup. After reading the news, I decided it would be timely and make sense to review a Blue Moon beer that I had on hand.
I’ve been hearing a lot about Blue Moon over the last year, but it didn’t seem to be that common in the Jersey area until recently. I was given a six-pack of the Blue Moon “Rising Moon”, which is their seasonal Spring Ale, and this will be the beer I am reviewing today.
According to the label, Rising Moon spring ale is a blend of “...three varieties of specialty malts with Kieffer lime leaves and lime peel…” I know there is something of a trend with these lime-flavored beers, so I wasn’t sure if the Blue Moon entry was going to be a leader, or a follower. Let’s see!
I opened it normally and poured it into my standard reviewing glass (I know, its an iced-tea glass. Blasphemy!) It poured nicely, and created a pretty foamy head that almost went over the glass on me! The beer simmered-down shortly in the glass, and I began my sensory investigation.
Blue Moon’s Rising Moon had a very nice amber color to it in the glass. It was nice and clear, and it had some bubble-action, but nothing crazy. The Rising Moon Seasonal Ale had something of an odd smell to it that I can’t really describe, but it did not smell like limes. It smelt a little weird actually, and overall, the smell is what I likes least about this beer. Can a scent be described as “bitter”?
Anyway, I took a swig and was on the lookout for an overpowering lime attack on my tastebuds, but that did not happen. What I found after drinking this beer was that the lime flavor was quite delicate, and really could only be detected after the beer went down. A subtle lime aftertaste is the best I can describe it. It is definately not lime-flavored beer, which in my mind, is a good thing.
The Rising Moon went down pretty smoothly, didn’t sting or taste bitter at all, in spite of what the scent might have had me predict. Overall, it was enjoyable to drink.
Would I buy it again or recommend it to a friend? Sure, I guess I would. It wouldn’t be at the top of my list, but the Rising Moon spring seasonal ale is certainly a decent beer with that stands out as just a little different, and not quite what you might expect.
Rating:
Enjoy & Share - Push our buttons!
These icons link to social bookmarking sites where readers can share and discover new web pages.
Posted in Ales, American Beer Reviews, Brew Reviews, Lime Flavored Beer Reviews, Seasonal Beers, Three Star Reviews No Comments »
Subscribe Here
