Jubel 2010

Jubel 2010
Deschutes Brewery
Bend, Oregon
10.00% ABV
Style: American Strong Ale

C: Cloudy
H: Light Brown, almost like a watered down Rootbeer
N: Dark Fruits (Plumbs/Cherries), Candy Sugar, Pinot/Oak Odors

The Ferm: You have to love a beer that reads "Best AFTER", that's right not before. AFTER! That means the beer was release a bit pre-mature in my opinion, but hey who cares. Well lucky for me this beer was opened after the date on the bottle so it was "ready" to drink.
And Ready to drink it was! This beer was almost unlike anything else I have ever had. The thick/sticky mouth feel was a pleasant surprise as the sugars took front and center on the taste. Hints of the dark fruits came across, and everything was followed by a hint of barrel/oak funk. The Funk didn't overpower but simply complemented the super sugary flavor of this beer.
Very Nice Surprise!

Score: 4.2156

EvilTwin, Hunahpu, and more Shenanigans

Well as Aerosmith once sang "I'm Back in the Saddle Again".  Speaking of has anyone watched this season of American Idol?  It is typically horrible but this year is even worse!

Regardless.....This week I had the pleasure of sitting down with the most successful Guest Blogger that has ever been on DosBeerigos. EvilTwin is back and ready to go. Successful...that's right....someone found out that EvilTwin could write and is paying him to write about beer! The Examiner has EvilTwin covering The Ft. Lauderdale Area's Beer Scene! Yep...he gets paid....and I well I get to do this thing for free! (Lucky You!)

Check out EvilTwin's Beer Adventures over at the Examiner by going to here ----> LINK TO EvilTwin's 1st Article and Subscribe!

Well anyways now that Casey has hit the big time he can only review 3 beers with me....(I can't afford to pay him for any more!). So this week we will have 3 AMAZING BEER REVIEWS, and I will fill the remainder of the week in with news about events. By events I mean HUNAHPU RELEASE INFORMATION!

That's right kids Hunahpu! The beer that have people foaming at the mouth for Cigar City Brewing Stuff will be released this upcoming Saturday. There will be all kinds of crazyness going on this year! I hope to see you in Tampa.

In the meantime you can always catch up with the bi-weekly podcast on your drive over to CCB, that would be United We Drink. Find it for FREE in Itunes!

Ohh Yess and there also may be some information about a possible Imperial Maple Bacon Release at my favorite local brewery.....STAY TUNNED!

Cigar City Oatmeal Raisin Cookie

Oatmeal Raisin Cookie
Cigar City Brewing
Tampa, FL
5.50% ABV
Style: American Brown Ale

C: Clear
H: Brownish
N: Cinnamon, Brown Sugar, Vanilla.....Just Like an Oatmeal Raisin Cookie!

Miguel: Ah a tasty treat from CCB. I've had this one many times but always on draft. This is the first time out of a bottle as they are brand new. Cinnamon and oats in the nose make me know that this is the beer that I have come to love. The taste is pretty spot on from the draft as well. Raisins, oatmeal, cinnamon and a tad of vanilla. I love it when a brewery can be so spot on with the taste of a beer when naming it. Shorts did it with the Key Lime Pie Ale. And yes this beer tastes like an oatmeal raisin cookie.
4.3854

The Ferm: I have loved this beer since I tried it on draft at Jupiter Craft Beer Festival last year. Almost a year to date, I still appreciate this beer for what it is. Very rarely do you find a beer that lives up to the name on the bottle. Seriously, someone comes up with a witty name that thinks will help sell the beer and when you get the bottle home it is a let down. This is the only beer that I have had that taste like a real cookie!
Now on to the bottle review, I have heard that the bottling is a bit weaker than some of the draft batches. I have to say I disagree. The beer is on point. All the distinct flavors are sticking out and holding strong. I actually think that there is more brown sugar in the bottles then on draft. Regardless an amazing beer packed with tons of vanilla, brown sugar, and cinnamon.
Score: 4.89

Overall: 4.6377

Blue Point Toasted Lager

Blue Point Toasted Lager
Blue Point Brewing Company
Patchogue, New York
5.30% ABV
Style: Vienna Lager

C: Clear
H: Gold
N: Toasty Malt, Hints of Grain, and Sweet Butter

Miguel: I learned a little tid bit of knowledge from Fresh Beer Webguy about Blue Point when we had this. All 12 oz bottles of their beer are contract brewed. Only the bombers and kegs are brewed at the actual brewery. So with this 12 ouncer I will keep that in mind. The nose is pretty much toasted malts. I guess they got that spot on. The taste has more of that along with some buttery notes. A slightly creamy mouthfeel (haha) reminds of of a hand drawn beer. And I love me cask beers so bonus points. But that can also be a sign of infection sometimes. Is it meant to be that way? I'm not exactly sure. But I found this to be an enjoyable lager that would be a good session beer in the summer.
Score: 3.2002

The Ferm: Well I have to say I expected this to be a very light bodied lager. I was wrong, it actually had a very nice medium body. The flavors of the beer are subtle, which was expected. The only thing that was sort of a shocker was the fact that this is pretty sweet. This is a beer I would like to see canned, as it would be perfect for outdoor event in Florida (just Florida though...lol). Light and refreshing. Not a bad beer at all.
Score: 2.98

Overall: 3.0901

Bitter Brewer

Bitter Brewer
Surly Brewing Company
Brooklyn Center, Minnesota
4.00% ABV
Style: English Bitter

C: Clear
H: Gold
N: Hoppy...Strong Pale Ale Quality, Light Malt with Hints of Hop Bitterness

Miguel: This is the first time I've ever reviewed something from Surly. The yellowish/orange can makes it look like an energy drink but it probably isn't as bad as most of those. It is ultra clear but the small white head is gone before I could type a sentance of this length. I just get a ton of hop notes in the nose. They are citrusy, grassy, piney. The taste is more of the same. It's just a bitter attack at your taste buds. Tons and tons of hops. BA classifies this as an English Bitter but this is much more bitter than what I get from more traditional versions of the style. I thought it was a very hoppy pale ale. This was a little too bitter for me. I would have like a tad more balance. Oh well.
Score: 2.9248

The Ferm: Craft Beer in a can! I am a true sucker for this. While there is nothing special about this beer flavor profile wise, I could see myself using this as a go to beer for outdoor events. At only 4%, this English Bitter is refreshing and a lot more flavor than our typical tall-boy can! Great beer to share with someone else or drink by yourself at the beach, a tailgate, or while walking the dog (if you really need to drink while walking the dog.....just saying!). Good beer, but nothing overly special.
Score: 2.817

Overall: 2.8709

Florida Beer Meetup #1 (Skulls, Parking Lot Fights, ohh and Beer!)

So yesterday I jumped in the car with The Cerveza Chica, Miguel, and Evil Twin.  We decided to make a day trip 220 miles away from South Florida to meetup with some of the most active individuals in the Florida State Beer Scene.

About 3 hours later we finally pulled into the Cock & Bull in Sarasota, Florida. Outside we met with the crypt keeper himself, Rick from Ales from the Crypt. While catching up I could not help but to look at the outside of this building we were about to invade....it was well a run down looking house.

Once I inched closer to the door I noticed, that the outside appearance was maybe to fend off any snobby beer drinkers. Inside it was all business....almost like walking into a piece of heaven in Sarasota Florida.

Inside, the now 5 Beerigos, met Howie one part of the ownership of the Cock & Bull. We also reunited with Gerrard from Road Trips for Beer, and "the man, the myth, the legend" Alan Shaw (well he isn't so much of a myth anymore cause I met him finally!). Howie, gave us free run of what was an amazing beer bar, and the outside patio.

The lineup was built.

Once some bottles started to pop, out of nowhere Amie, "The Crazy Cat Lady" just appeared. In her words, "anything having to do with Epic Beer and Amazing People in the state of Florida, I will be there!"

OK, so we drank a lot of samples and shared good stories about Skulls, Cross Bones, and Graves (hehehe). We spoke a bit more about the Florida Beer Scene where it has come and where it is going. Ohh yah and we spoke about what we have all been up to since the last time we all got together.

Now where is the Parking Lot Fights coming from?

Well, on the way home the 4 South Florida Beerigos were grabbing some snacks and gas for the trip back. All I can say is an episode of Jerry Springer broke out in the parking lot of 711. What happened? I really don't know but this one couple was just not very happy with each other. It made for some interesting conversation for the trip home!

I look forward to meeting up with everyone again soon! Big thanks goes out to Howie from the Cock & Bull for hosting the event! I promise I will get a review of your fine establishment up on this blog ASAP....it was one of the best beer bars I have ever been to! Thanks for Gerrard, Alan, Amie, Rick, and of course my 3 Beerigos that made the trip with!

"Good People Drink Good Beer" ~Hunter S. Thompson