Beer Review: Los Gigantes Lager from Anchor Brewing

Style(s): Mexican lager, light session beer

Alcohol by Volume: 4.5%

Very few things scream summer as much as tailgating at a baseball game. The beer does not need to be anything crazy or special. More times than not, fancier beers distort the idea of a tailgate. The ability to sit back and session away a few beers is key. Bud, Miller, and Coors – among others – tend to dominate the tailgating scene. But if you’re looking for a craft alternative, Los Gigantes – a Mexican style lager from Anchor Brewing, is a great option.

Appearance is as expected. Los Gigantes pours a clear straw gold with a HUGE fluffy white head. Small aggressive bubbles stream up the glass. The beer looks almost cartoonish in that it looks just like a beer in a Macrobrew advertisement!

The nose was faint, which is to be expected with a lighter lager. Subtle wispy wheat/grain qualities were most dominant. It does not have the most pleasant or aggressive aroma, but it’s not off-putting. It is simply standard.

Los Gigantes delivers a crisp  punch on the tongue. This is a highly carbonated beer which goes down smoothly. It also has a spritz-y vibe that makes it super refreshing.

On the palate the beer followed the nose almost exactly. There is a strong wheat backbone with very subtle citrus notes. Though most of the qualities of the beer remind me of macro lagers like Bud, Miller and Coors, there is a little more depth to Los Gigantes. I am not one to add fruit to my beer, but a small slice of lime would take this beer miles farther.

Compared to all other craft beers, this is not what would be considered to be a hot commodity. It’s not eccentric or clever enough, but that’s OK; it doesn’t have to be. At the end of the day simplicity is key, especially when it comes to lower alcohol beers. Though I may not be well versed in Mexican lagers, I feel fully confident saying this is a great brew to crush before, during or after a ball game.

Well recommended.

Ryan Moyer

 

Los Gigantes (The Giants) is a joint product of Anchor Brewing and the San Francisco Giants baseball team.

Ryan Moyer is a graduate of Indiana University. His mission is to make the Midwest a safe haven of quality beers.

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Beer Review: Sufferfest Epic Pilsner

SUMMERFEST FROM SUFFERFEST: Epic Pilsner

There are far too many whale hunters looking for the booziest barleywines, most robust imperial stouts, and the juiciest triple India Pale Ales in the country, sometimes paying several hundred dollars per bottle.  It is absurd.  Although I can never turn down a whale when the opportunity presents itself, lately I find myself gravitating more towards lower alcohol by volume (ABV) beers.

I find this especially true in the summer, where the last thing anyone wants to be drinking out on the patio with the sun beating down on them is a big-bodied boozy brew.  My general rule of thumb is the higher the temperature the lower ABV I prefer my beer to have.  Perfect examples of summer styles for me include Berliner weiss, kolsch, and, of course, the almighty pilsner.

Epic Pilsner from Sufferfest Beer Company seemed true to style in every regard until I discovered that it was “crafted to remove gluten.”  Upon seeing this on the can I went to their website and I found that all of their beers are void of gluten.  I’ve had few gluten free beers that could stand on their own two feet, but this one doesn’t merely stand on its own but runs.

This beer is a crystal clear, pale straw in appearance with a light, fluffy white head.  The beer leaves lacing that coats the glass.  This pilsner looks like every golden beer you see on TV.  Epic Pils has a very subtle nose.  There are slight lemon and grass tones.  The palate follows the nose almost exactly as the earthy tones of the Saaz hops gently cut through the layers of the sweet biscuit malt.  This beer is thin and leaves your mouth dry, begging you to have can after can, and at only 5.1% ABV it is easy to throw back a few without having to worry about getting overly buzzed or trashed.

Epic Pilsner shines through with its subtle complexity.  The delicate nose and clean, refreshing qualities pair perfectly with an easy-going summer afternoon on the back patio, the nearest worry miles away.

Do not be turned off by the gluten free warning.  Summerfest Epic Pilsner is well worth seeking out!

Highly recommended.

Ryan Moyer

Ryan Moyer, beer expert, is a graduate of Indiana University.

Note:  Sufferfest beers are brewed and canned in San Francisco.

Bee My Baby

Beer Review: Track 7 Bee Line Blonde Ale

 

We live in an era where breweries are only as good as their India Pale Ales (IPAs) and Imperial Stouts.  It’s hard not to get caught up in the craze surrounding these two styles.  I, too, feel like I have to force myself to try beers in varying styles, making deals with myself like, “You can have an IPA after you have a beer of a different style.”  The funny thing is that even though it feels like a chore just to order a non-IPA, I usually drink it with no major issues.  Recently, I got my hands on Track 7’s Bee Line Blonde Ale and I didn’t just think it was a fine beer, but an excellent beer.

There were no surprises in the appearance as it could have been mistaken for honey in the glass.  Seeing a golden beer with a pillowy white head is always a welcomed sight. The head dissipated rather quickly, but left rings of lacing down the glass.  For a blonde ale brewed with honey, it’s appearance was spot on.  5/5

On the nose it is very reminiscent of some classic German pilsners and some adjunct lagers.  You get a head of grain and wheat, but then on the back end you notice some sweet honey that rounds the profile out.  4/5

As expected, this is definitely a thinner beer, but it doesn’t diminish the beer at all.  The honey definitely gives the body a little weight, but it was still light and crisp with decent carbonation making it seem spritzy at times, dancing around the mouth.  This made me think of bees buzzing around!  Maybe I wouldn’t have thought that way if the beer were named something else, but it definitely impacted my perception.  4/5

The honey is definitely more noticeable on the palate than the nose, which I’ve found to be the case with many beers brewed with honey.  There is a subtle hop bite on the back end — very reminiscent of German pilsners — that contrasts the sweet honey in the best way possible.  There is a grainy aspect to the taste as well and reminds me of some adjunct lagers, but thankfully the honey and hop bill combat it and leave you with a lighter low ABV beer with plenty of flavor and character.  4.25/5

Honestly, this is my favorite blond ale to date.  There is a depth to this Sacramento brewed beer that is often missing in the style.  It’s the perfect summer beer as it is light and refreshing, while delivering loads of flavor.  It won’t wear you down and sit heavy on you like some other varieties do.  Overall, I’d have to give this beer a final ranking of 4.33/5.  Highly recommended.

I’m glad I got to drink a beer out of my wheelhouse, because this beer makes me want to explore the options outside of stouts and IPAs that rule the beer world and see what else more seemingly simple types can offer.  If you are able to pick this beer up, I would.  This is certainly a beer that people in the craft game can appreciate, but it could also be an excellent gateway beer for your macro-drinking friends.  If they can’t appreciate it, who cares?  That just leaves more good beer for you.

Ryan Moyer

ABV: 5.25%; IBUs: 31; Original Gravity: 1.050; Hops: Fuggle, Magnum, Tettnang

Ryan Moyer is a graduate of Indiana University.

 

 

Beer Review: Red Trolley Ale

I recently had the pleasure of tasting Karl Strauss Brewing Company’s highly acclaimed Red Trolley Ale. This Irish Red boasts gold medals from the 2010 and 2013 Great American Beer Festival as well as the 2010 and 2012 World Beer Cup, and 14 medals from various other beer festivals and competitions. The brew’s website claims Red Trolley Ale is a “medium-bodied beer with heavyweight malts” and their description does not mislead.

This beer poured a beautiful deep copper/toffee color with a barely present tan head. The head barely lasted a minute as it dissipated into nothing. There was also an absence of lacing. Maybe I gave it a subpar pour, but I doubt that was the case. The color was very pleasing, but the lack of a head and lacing severely reduces its appearance rating down to a 2.5/5.

When smelling Red Trolley Ale, you get nothing but malts on the nose. It doesn’t boast an overpowering aroma, yet there is an obvious caramel backbone with hints of toffee. It’s pretty simple on the nose, but that does not diminish the quality. It’s smell is a solid 3.5/5.

As promised, this beer definitely prides itself on the “heavyweight malts.” It is much more complex on the palate than the nose, however. Red Trolley is predominantly caramel and toffee flavored beer, though there seem to be no bittering hops, but that’s to be expected for the style. Instead, there is a hint of some dark fruits on the back end and after taste, perhaps a bit of San Diego influence into the Irish Red style. As the beer warms you really begin to appreciate the density and the complexity of the play between the subtle fruit notes against the strong malt base. There also seemed to be some hidden spice characteristics that began to remind me of Great Lakes Brewing Company’s Christmas Ale. This brew definitely takes the palate for a ride – 4.5/5.

The mouth feel was no surprise for an Irish Red. There was low to moderate carbonation and the beer coats the back of the mouth and the throat in a velvet blanket upon first sip. It was a little much for me, but not terrible and definitely on point for the style, so I’m giving its mouth feel a 4/5.

Throughout my tasting I was pleasantly surprised. I’m usually not a fan of malt driven beers and I’m not entirely familiar with Irish Reds, but compared to the ones I’ve had, this is definitely near – it not at – the top of my list. The only thing that really hurts the beer is its appearance, which – though aesthetically pleasing, isn’t entirely important in the tasting. In my opinion, this malt driven brew with its hidden spices and subtle dark fruits would make an excellent winter warmer; great for a snowy evening next to the fire.

Though the Irish Red isn’t my go to style, I highly appreciate this beer and understand the respect it has garnered in the brewing community. When averaging out the numbers, this beer comes out to a very respectable 3.63/5.

Well recommended.

Ryan Moyer

Ryan Moyer is a graduate of Indiana University. Red Trolley Ale is brewed and bottled in San Diego, California; thus making it an imported beer for most of the country.

Monkey Knife Fight

Beer Review: Rubicon Monkey Knife Fight Pale Ale

A couple of weeks ago I received a 22-ounce bomber of Monkey Knife Fight Pale Ale. Monkey Knife Fight is an American Pale Ale coming in at 5.4% Alcohol By Volume (ABV). Rubicon Brewing Company calls it a “quintessential session beer” despite it’s >5% ABV (I’m not complaining) and an “example of the Modern American Pale Ale.” They say it is brewed with 2 Row light crystal malts, Mt. Hood hops for balance, and then dry hopped with Cascade hops, which is common in West Coast pale ales to give it a dry, crisp, floral taste.

I poured this into my favorite snifter and was blown away by its appearance. Monkey Knife Fight poured a beautiful copper in hue with a thick, creamy white one-and-one-half finger head. This beer was very hazy and I noticed plenty of yeast left in the bottom of my glass. I adored the retention of the thick head and lacing throughout my entire tasting. This is, without a doubt, one of the best looking beers I’ve had the pleasure of tasting and earns a 4.5/5 in its appearance rating.

The aroma on this brew was very fresh, yet subdued and citrusy in the initial nose, but turns more floral the further into the beer you get, courtesy of the dry-hopped Cascade hops. Though it was a pleasant scent, I was not blown away by it and would have liked the initial nose to carry throughout more of the tasting. Monkey Knife Fight gets a 3.5/5 for its aroma.

My first sip was a bit confusing. I tasted some sweet biscuit or bready malts and it was nothing like the nose led me to expect. The hops hit you up front, but the malts sooth you on the back end. Overall, Monkey Knife Fight had a very balanced malt/hop profile as neither take a real commanding role in the flavor, which was strange based on my understanding that West Coast pale ales are generally much more hop dominant, oozing with citrus and floral notes. I’m all for refusing to be confined to arbitrary boundaries and categories, but it just wasn’t what I was expecting. Like the aroma, it was pleasant, but I wasn’t blown away, so Monkey Knife Fight receives a 3.5/5 for its taste as well.

Monkey Knife Fight felt crisp and exceptionally carbonated for the first few sips, but eventually started coating my mouth. A little further in, the coating grew stickier and thicker, before thinning out. And then towards the end I noticed that it was getting stickier and thicker than before. I’m usually not for beers coating my mouth, but the fluctuating waves from full and sticky to dry and crisp was a neat experience. In the mouthfeel department, Monkey Knife Fight gets a 3.5/5.

Overall, I was torn in many directions during my tasting of this beer. Since Rubicon Brewing Company is from Sacramento, I expected a much hoppier, citrusy, piney, floral taste, but was given bready malts. With a name like Monkey Knife Fight, I was expecting absolute chaos on my palate, but that was not the case. Instead, this was a very mellow, easy drinking, sessionable brew, like Rubicon advertises! Maybe the inspiration for the name was drawn from the play between hops up front countered by the malts on the back end. Regardless of what I was expecting from the name, Monkey Knife Fight, as Rubicon claims, truly is a “quintessential session beer” and earns a 3.75/5 for its overall rating. I look forward to trying more brews from Rubicon Brewing Company!

Ryan Moyer

Ryan Moyer is a graduate of Indiana University. If you’re interested in more of Ryan’s beer musings, check out his and his friend’s craft beer exclusive Instagram account @maltedhopballs .

Note: Rubicon Monkey Knife Fight Pale Ale is now available in a six-pack of 12-ounce bottles in the greater Sacramento area.

Man on the Moon

Beer Review: Moon Man No Coast Pale Ale from New Glarus Brewing

While I was spending my summer in Bloomington, Indiana, a good friend of mine, Eric, visited for the Fourth of July weekend. He and I are what some may call beer snobs. We prefer the term beer geeks, however, because at the end of the day, we really don’t care what people are drinking so long as they are enjoying what they’re drinking. We both wish we could expose others to craft beers, help guide them through what they’re tasting, and see their reaction to major hop bombs or big roasty stouts. But that’s not what some people are into. Again, what separates us from the snobs out there is that we really don’t care what people are drinking so long as they are enjoying themselves.

Eric was visiting from Gurnee, Illinois, located near the border of Illinois and Wisconsin. He knows how much I enjoy New Glarus beer, and seeing as it has very limited distribution, he picked up some six packs and headed down. When he arrived, he showed me his mini haul; a six pack of Spotted Cow, a New Glarus classic, and a mixed six pack consisting of Moon Man and a few others.

Being an American Pale Ale (APA) lover, the first beer I wanted to try was Moon Man, and I was not disappointed in the least bit.

The appearance of this beer threw me off. It poured rich gold in color, which is a little light in color for the style and there wasn’t much head and the little there was dissipated rather quickly. What saved its appearance rating was the great lacing it left in the glass. Although it may not look exactly like what I think an APA should look like, its appearance is the least important quality of the beer. I rate its appearance as a 3.75/5.

As far as aroma is concerned, this one packs a very fruitful, floral aroma. Some citrus notes – grapefruit, I believe. Very bold. Not very piney, which is a characteristic common in APAs, but I was completely OK with that. This beer gets a 4.5/5 for its fresh floral and citrus aroma.

Regarding taste, balance is the name of the game with this brew. It has a very sweet malt profile that contradicts the hops. It’s definitely not the hoppiest pale ale out there by any stretch of the imagination. You get the sweetness up front that is finished off with an acute burst of hops on the way down. Not too sweet, not too bitter – BALANCED. This one easily earns a 4.5/5 for taste.

When drinking, this is a very smooth beer. It leaves a hint of dryness on the back half, but overall it’s very crisp and nicely carbonated. For the mouth feel I’d say it deserves a 4.25/5.

Overall: I was incredibly surprised by this brew. Moon Man is fully unassuming and a phenomenal representation of the style. APAs are my favorite, and this one is at the top of my list. Moon Man has a nice malty presence that works well with the hops providing perhaps one of the most balanced beers I’ve ever had. This is a great beer and one that I feel may be under-appreciated due to its limited distribution. If I lived in Wisconsin, I’d be drinking this every day. As an overall grade, I rate this beer a 4.5/5.

Update: Although I had this beer a couple of months ago, I went recently to Wisconsin and stocked up on it. It’s a beer I will buy whenever I can get my hands on it, and I highly recommend that you do the same. Although it may not be a total hop bomb, it’s a cool, relaxed beer that plays to the characteristics of its style. I am very grateful that Eric shared this beer with me, and I hope my recommendation will influence anyone reading this to give it a try.

Eric and I are in the process of creating a blog dedicated to our love of craft beer and we have an Instagram exclusively for our journey through the world of craft beer. If you want to check us out, you can find us on Instagram @maltedhopballs.

Ryan Moyer

Ryan is a graduate of the University of Indiana.