Wyld Extra Pale Ale

Wyld Extra Pale Ale

Where purchased: Trader Joes

Cost: About 7 or 8 bucks

ABV: 4.0%

Size: 6 Pack - 12 oz

Yes, I'm finally back.  As I mentioned previously, I'm allergic to the nickel in my previous laptop.  I purchased a cover for the laptop and keyboard, but they just didn't cut it.  So, I ordered an all plastic laptop.  I finally received my new laptop this week, so I should be able to start posting reviews again.

Let's get on with this review.  

On my most recent trip to Las Vegas, I saw a six pack of cans packed neatly into a box.  I thought to myself how convenient and easy it would be to carry this six pack back to Hawaii.  So I went for it.  I really didn't spend much time looking at the details behind the beer, so when I got home, I realized that the beer was only 4% alcohol.  I was worried that the beer was going to lack flavor. 

I worried for nothing.  This 4% Extra Pale Ale by Uinta Brewing in Salt Lake City is a very refreshing, flavorful, and sessionable beer.  The interesting thing about this beer is how light it is, yet how much hop flavor is in the beer.  The nose is initially malty and sweet with the slight aroma of hops.  The flavors mirror the nose in that the flavors are hoppy yet, not very bitter.  The beer has an amazing amount of flavor for something that seems so light.  I guess the best way that I could put it is that the beer is light and vibrant.  

I was very pleased with this beer, and it's a shame that I'll have to wait for my next trip to the Mainland to get this beer.  

I'm allergic to my Laptop

I posted this over at my other blog, but I'm allergic to the nickel in my laptop.  It's going to be a few days before a new post, because I don't want to spend an extended amount of time photo editing, and writing anything until my palm guard comes in.

Until then, have a great week!

Youngs Double Chocolate Stout

Youngs Double Chocolate Stout

Where purchased: Tamura’s Fine Wine and Liquor

Cost: $13.49

ABV: 5.2%

Size: 4 Pack - 14.9 oz

When I saw this 4 pack at the store, I couldn't pass it up.  Not only is the labeling on the can appealing to me, I do love my stouts.  This beer is meant to be poured into a glass.  In fact, the instructions on the can ask you to let the beer settle much like you would a Guinness.  After I poured the beer, the nose on the beer was of roasted malt with a chocolate finish.  The beer smells sweet probably due to the chocolate character.

The beer was very smooth and not very carbonated with flavors primarily of roasted malt.  It might just be that my palette isn't very refined, but the overall flavor of roasted malt, and mouth feel was very similar to a Guinness.  What wasn't similar however were the subtle chocolate flavors that pervades the beer.  I enjoyed drinking this beer.  So much so in fact, that I'm looking forward to drinking the last one tonight.  

Widmer Alchemy Ale

Widmer Alchemy Ale

Where purchased: Tamura’s Fine Wine and Liquor

Cost: $7.59

ABV: 7.0%

Size: 6 Pack - 12oz

I had a chance to try this beer last year, and I thought it was delicious.  Shortly after I tried it, I went back to the store, and all of the entire stock was sold out!  I haven't seen these resurface back on this island until recently.  This Alchemy Ale reminds me of the Widmer Drifter Pale Ale, which by the way, I do not see around town anymore.  

The nose on this beer is slightly malty and hoppy with a bit of a fruit note on it.  The flavors of this beer mimic the nose in that the initial flavors are slightly malty with the flavors of hops coming through towards the middle and the back of the palette.  I really enjoyed the flavors on this beer as I characterize them being fruity.  I can't detect whether the hops are more citrusy or 'tropical' like some sort of passion fruit or something.  Either way, the flavor profiles of this beer really appeals to me.  If you are a fan of citrusy or fruity hops, you may enjoy this beer too.  

Coronado Brewing Islander IPA

Coronado Brewing Islander IPA

Where purchased: Tamura’s Fine Wine and Liquor

Cost: $4.59

ABV: 7.0%

Size: 22oz

I was pleasantly surprised by the Coronado Brewing Company's Islander IPA.  This IPA has a very nice fruity nose on it.  At first I thought this nose was a bit citrusy.  But, the more I smelled the beer the more I thought it smelled a little like passion fruit.  I guess I wasn't too far off.  The description on the bottle describes this beer as having notes of apricot, grapefruit and mango after all.  I suppose that's why this is an Islander IPA.

The flavor of this beer is slightly sweet and bitter while simultaneously providing flavors of fruity citrusy hops.  Overall, the balance on this beer was right up my alley.  This is definitely an IPA that I will buy again.  This was after all the third time I purchased this beer in the last couple of months.

Rogue Shakespeare Oatmeal Stout

Rogue Shakespeare Oatmeal Stout

Where purchased: Tamura’s Fine Wine and Liquor

Cost: $6.99

ABV: 6.1% according to Beer Advocate

Size: 22oz

I bought this beer a couple of months ago to taste for the purpose of creating this blog.  But, I was still trying to figure out how to photograph my beers back then, so I decided to scrap the photos, and give this beer a shot again.  Let me just say that I was more than happy to give this beer another go.  I love this beer in all of its toasty goodness, and this second tasting did not disappoint.

The nose on this beer is of a toasted/roasted malt with hints of chocolate.  There is also a hint of alcohol coming through on the nose.  The initial flavors of the beer is predominantly bitter roasted malt.  But, something starts to come through shortly after that, and I can only describe it as that bitter full bodied flavor of high quality cocoa chocolate without any of the sweetness.  Finally, the subtle flavors of chocolate finish off this beer.  Books on brewing, and other reviewers will say that oatmeal lends a nice "mouth feel" to beer.  Admittedly, I forgot to notice the mouth feel on this beer because I was too busy enjoying the complexity of the flavors.  This is definitely a beer I could enjoy on a weekly basis.  

Rogue Mom Hefeweizen

Rogue Mom Hefeweizen

Where purchased: Tamura’s Fine Wine and Liquor

Cost: $6.99

ABV: 4.8% according to Beer Advocate

Size: 22oz

When I first grabbed this beer off the shelf, I hesitated.  I wasn't keen on drinking a beer brewed with roses.  Quite frankly, I don't care how roses smell.  But, I decided to keep an open mind, and I purchased the beer anyway.  

I was pleasantly surprised by the flavors and the aroma of the beer.  This beer actually smelled a lot like the typical malty home brew that I brew up at home.  The nose was of fermented malt which is fairly pungent with no hops aroma.  The flavor was also tart through the entire tasting.  I would have to guess that this tartness is from the fact that the beer probably isn't heavily hopped.  Overall, I really liked the clean yet tart flavor of this beer.  What was interesting to me was a slight flavor of citrus in the aftertaste.  It might be the rose flavors that I'm interpreting as citrus.  

I consider this beer to be clean and sessionable, and considering that it's only 4.8%, I could definitely enjoy more than one of these in one sitting.  

Samuel Adams Rebel IPA

Samuel Adams Rebel IPA

Where purchased: Gift from a friend

Cost: Gift

ABV: 6.5%

Size: 12oz

When my friend told me that Costco was selling a Samuel Adams IPA pack, I headed immediately down to Costco, and mistakenly bought the Samuel Adams Hopology pack.  The Hopology pack was an interesting mix of beer, but I still couldn't talk to my friend about the Rebel IPA.  About a week ago, he handed me a six pack with three Rebel IPAs, and three of his home brewed hefeweisen beers.  

The Rebel IPA has a malty nose that has a bit of caramel or butterscotch character to it.  The beer is generally bitter throughout, but is well balanced with the strong flavor or malt.  That butterscotch flavor on the malt prevails through the entire taste.  I also noticed a nice inclusion of hops flavor throughout the entire tasting.  Interestingly, the hops aroma isn't very prevalent, probably due to the fact that the malt nose is so strong.  While the Rebel IPA isn't the type of IPA that I normally drink, it's still an enjoyable IPA.  I would definitely buy a case of this beer.  

Deschutes Fresh Squeezed IPA

Deschutes Fresh Squeezed IPA

Where purchased: Tamura’s Fine Wine and Liquor

Cost: $11.29

ABV: 6.4%

Size: 6/12oz Bottles

I saw this six pack of Deschutes Fresh Squeezed IPA prominently displayed at my local beer store, and I just had to buy it.  However designed this label is a genius because I could just imagine the flavors of hops in this beer.  Well, they weren't kidding.  This is a very hoppy beer.  The nose on this beer is very hoppy with a lot of grapefruit and some floral aroma to it.  I actually detected a slight bit of sweetness on the mid palette, but bitterness on the back of the tongue.  I even detected a slight caramel malt after taste which was very nice.  Overall, I felt that this beer was the right balance for my tastes.  

Something I should note, is after drinking all of these craft beers, I was half expecting this beer to be slightly cloudy.  I even expected to see some sediment at the bottle of the bottle.  I was wrong on both counts.  The beer poured clear, and there was no sediment or yeast at the bottom of the bottle.  

Coronado Brewing & Cigar City Brewing Jurata Porter

Coronado Brewing & Cigar City Brewing Jurata Baltic Porter

Where purchased: Tamura’s Fine Wine and Liquor

Cost: $7.79

ABV: 8.0%

Size: 22oz

When I purchased this beer, I didn't realize that the ABV was 8%.  In fact, I went straight into tasting before I even read the label.  Surprisingly for a beer with such a high ABV, the beer wasn't harsh, and it didn't drink like a beer with a high alcohol content.  

This beer is a collaboration between Coronado Brewing and Cigar City Brewing.  The beer is named after a mermaid that used to swim the depths of the Mediterranean.  They named this beer after the mermaid because of the special yeast they used that would need to traverse the depths of their fermenters to create this beer.

The nose on this beer is of roasted malts and coffee and hops.  There was also a slight sweetness on the nose as well as the alcohol.  There was also a hint of sweetness when drinking this beer, and I felt that it was due to the alcohol content in this beer bringing out that sweetness.  But, mostly the flavors are dominated by the roasted coffee flavors, and a bitter finish.  Is should note that while the roasty flavors dominated, the coffee flavor isn't as strong on this beer as I've noticed on other porters.  Overall though, I enjoyed this beer, and would definitely get it again.  

Deschutes Hop in the Dark C.D.A.

Deschutes Brewery Hop in the Dark C.D.A. (Cascadian Dark Ale)

Where purchased: Tamura’s Fine Wine and Liquor

Cost: $5.99

ABV: 6.8%

Size: 22oz

I'm a fan of porters and stouts.  I really enjoy the coffee and chocolate flavors that roasted barley and grains impart on a beer.  I'm also a fan of IPAs and some highly hopped ales.  Lately, I've been noticing a few beers that mix the dark roasted flavor of a porter with the hoppiness of an IPA.  This is Deschutes' take on a dark ale using roasted malt and hops to provide that IPA character.  

When I initially opened the beer, the nose on this beer was a predominantly roasted malts and coffee.  It actually smelled like I walked into a room after coffee was just brewed.  But, as the beer warmed a little, the smell of the hops started to become more noticeable.  The smell of the hops did have a bit of citrus character to it, but it was faint.  The initial flavors on the front of the tongue was slightly bitter, while the mid palette was of roasted malt and coffee.  By the time the beer washed over the back of my palette, the flavors of hoppy citrus started to take over.  

Overall, I was happy with the flavors of this beer.  I really enjoyed being able to experience the coffee flavors of a porter, while also being able to enjoy a bit of citrus hops.

Rogue Monk Seal Ale

Rogue Monk Seal Ale

Where purchased: Tamura’s Fine Wine and Liquor

Cost: $6.79/About 7 bucks

ABV: -

Size: 22oz

There's something about drinking beer for a good cause.  A portion of the proceeds from the sale of Rogue Monk Sea Ale goes towards the Waikiki Aquarium and its mission to increase appreciation and understanding of Pacific Marine Life.  If I could, I would drink ten of these to help out the marine animals around here.  

The Rogue Monk Sea Ale has a malty nose on it similar to Rogue's Dead Guy Ale.  At certain points, this beer smells a bit like some of the maltier home brews that I make.  The flavor of the beer is primarily malty up front, but is not as sweet as Rogue's Dead Guy.  The bitterness present counteracts any sweetness, and is fairly noticeable in the mid palette to the back of the tongue.  What I noticed most about the bitterness was that there were no strong hop flavors or aroma.  This would be a great beer for those who like malty, bitter beers, but don't like any of the flavors of aromas of hops.  I would have to guess that Rogue threw in the Perle and Sterling hops early during the brewing process to extract the bitterness without getting too much aroma or flavor from the hops.  

Overall, I felt that this was a clean and sessionable beer.  

Memorial Day Weekend 2014

I had these grandiose plans to try a lot of different beers this weekend, take good notes, and have lots of content to post to this blog throughout the week.  Yeah...  Well, I did only one of these things - I tried a variety of beers, but didn't take the time to note my thoughts on how the beers tasted.

You see, my weekend was full of commitments.  I didn't have free time to drink these beers quietly in my home.  On Friday, I stopped at the Restaurant Row in Honolulu to meet my wife's friends for Happy Hour.  While there, I tried Goose Island's limited edition Endless IPA.  

Goose Island Endless IPA

I detected notes of citrus on the nose, but the hops flavor present on the beer leaned towards a little bit of pine to me.  I would definitely be willing to give this beer another try for an appropriate review later on.  

On Saturday night, I went to Doraku Sushi on Kapiolani for a wedding celebration.  The food was great, and the selection of beer was better than I expected.  I started the night with a Kirin Ichiban macrobrew, but moved on to drinking a Rogue Dead Guy Ale, Echigo Koshihikari, and the Echigo Stout.   

Doraku Sushi on Kapiolani

On Sunday, we had dinner plans at a friend's house.  I brought the beers below for a mini beer tasting.  I enjoyed each and every one of these beers.  We progressed from the Amber Ales up to the IPAs.  Of the beers we drank that night, I really enjoyed the Deschutes Armory XPA, and the Islander IPA by Coronado.  I really didn't take the time to note my thoughts down on these beers, so I'll have to do a proper review on each of these beers at a later time.

The selection of beers from Sunday night

Rogue Chipotle Ale

Rogue Chipotle Ale

Where purchased: Tamura’s Fine Wine and Liquor

Cost: About 7 Bucks

ABV: 5.5% according to Beer Advocate

Size: 22oz

I watch a lot of beer brewing videos, and I’ve seen a lot of folks attempt to make beer with roasted or smoked peppers.  I’ve always wondered how a beer with pepper would taste.  Let me just say that I was pleasantly surprised.  

The beer starts off with a nose alternating between sweet maltiness, and smokiness.  The malt smell is similar to the malt in Rogue’s Dead Guy Ale.  Then all at once, the smokiness prevails.  The flavors also hit in a similar way.  At the front of the tongue, I detected a slightly sweet maltiness, then as the beer washes over the center and the back of the mouth the smokiness is present.  I’m not sure if it was a hint of spiciness, but the carbonation on this beer seems vigorous and refreshing.  As I said, I was pleasantly surprised, and very happy with this beer.  I’d like to purchase a few more bottles to taste with friends.

Rogue Dead Guy Ale

Rogue Dead Guy Ale

Where purchased: The Row Bar at Restaurant Row

Cost: $4 during Happy Hour

ABV: 6.5% according to Beer Advocate

Size: 12oz

I remember drinking this beer for the first time about 10 years ago.  At that time, I couldn’t really appreciate the bitterness, nuances, and flavors of craft beers.  Consequently, at that time, I felt that this beer was a bit too strong and full bodied for my tastes.  I was after all, drinking mostly the standard supermarket macrobrews back in the day.

The Dead Guy Ale was available at happy hour last night, and I decided to give it another go.  As it turns out, this is a fantastic beer in all it’s malty goodness.  A slightly sweet maltiness washes over the front of your palette while the bitterness from the hops takes over in the mid palette.  The bitterness present wasn’t up to the same level as say an IPA, but it was there.  Overall, I felt that this was a well balanced beer, that didn’t overwhelm my senses or taste buds.  I will definitely be on the lookout for more Dead Guy Ales in the future.  It’s no wonder that this beer has been around for so long.  It’s just a great beer.

Big Island Brewhaus Overboard IPA

Big Island Brewhaus Overboard IPA

Where purchased: Tamura’s Fine Wine and Liquor

Cost: About 8 bucks/$7.99 or so

ABV: 6.9%

Size: 22oz

The first time that I tried this beer, I had been bar hopping in Waikiki with my friend.  We encountered this beer at the last stop of our bar hopping adventure.  I was blown away by how good the beer tasted.  The beer was malty with a ton of citrus hop flavor on the back of the tongue.  But, as I mentioned, we had been bar hopping, so I had to be sure.  I recently bought this at the store, and this beer did not let me down.  It was just as good as I remembered it to be.  

I should mention that I prefer beers hopped with citrus flavors as opposed to floral notes.  This beer is right up my alley.

Deschutes Pine Mountain Pilsner

Deschutes Pine Mountain Pilsner

Where purchased: Tamura’s Fine Wine and Liquor

Cost: About 4 bucks

ABV: 5.2%

Size: 22oz

I've been buying Deschutes beers for the past couple of years.  I usually find myself buying the Black Butte Porter, Inversion IPA, or the Obsidian Stout.  They are all wonderful beers.  Recently my local beer store started to carry varieties of Deschutes that I haven't seen before.  The Deschutes Mountain Pilsner was one of those new beers that I haven't seen locally available before.

The Deschutes Pine Mountain Pilsner is a lighter beer in color and in flavor from the other Deschutes beers that I've tasted. Well, it is a Pilsner after all. I detected a bit more bitterness from the beer, than say a standard American Bud/Miller/Coors type of beer. I noted a woodsy and earthy flavor to the beer, and dare I say a little bit of pine? Maybe not, it might just be the label influencing me. I did also detect some earthiness on the nose as well.  Overall the beer was refreshing, especially in this warmer weather.  

Beer Brewing

Provided below are links to posts about beer brewing and home brewing.

There are no posts about brewing at this time.

Beer Reviews

Provided below are a listing of the beers that I've written about on this site.

Big Island Brewhaus Overboard IPA
Coronado Brewing & Cigar City Brewing Jurata Baltic Porter
Coronado Brewing Islander IPA
Deschutes Fresh Squeezed IPA
Deschutes Hop in the Dark C.D.A.
Deschutes Pine Mountain Pilsner
Rogue Chipotle Ale
Rogue Dead Guy Ale
Rogue Mom Hefeweizen
Rogue Monk Seal Ale
Rogue Shakespeare Oatmeal Stout
Samuel Adams Rebel IPA
Widmer Alchemy Ale
Wyld Extra Pale Ale
Youngs Double Chocolate Stout