Swiggin' Swill

"They partook in the merriness of the flowing ales. Thus it was spoken - Let us partake in the beers of old."

I know. I know. I just made that up. Sounds biblical in a certain way, though. I think it's cool to speak like that. Maybe it just sounds better when I write it? Who the hell knows. What matters is why I wrote it. My uncle has rarely visited over the years. As one of the few people in existence that I permit to indulge in my massive collection of beer, I obviously enjoy his presence. When he and my father get together, the hilarity of their adventures from the younger years always ensue.

While sampling he blurted out something that sounded dumb at first given our interest in craft, but upon thinking about it a second time. He proposed that we take a night at some point in the future and try some of the cheap beer that's still around from their college years.

He rattled off some names - National Bohemian, Lionshead and Old German were all mentioned. I had heard of Lionshead before as I've had it some number of years ago. I wasn't sure as to the existence of the other two, but was shocked to come across the actual websites. I've never seen either in any distributor. Anyways, you get the picture. None of these are something that most of us would actually enjoy drinking. I think that's just enough incentive to actually give this idea a whirl. Maybe do some cross comparisons to some actually decent pilsners?

I don't think I need cases of each of those, though which could make this project a much harder one to achieve.

At least I have tons of pretty glassware to put them in.

Beer Review: Stoudt's Pils

Serving Type: Bottle

ABV: 5.4 percent

Appearance: This brew boasted a bright yellow color. It sort of glistened in the light with it's golden hues. Up towards the fluffy, white and bubbly head was a few layers of hazy fog. It looked as if this aspect sort of dissipated as my eyes went down to the lower portions of the glass. The bubbles in the head helped to leave some thick and ample lacing. I also noticed a few solid columns of carbonation bubbles in the middle of the body that danced slowly upwards.

Smell: I got decent portions of bread and grass aromas. That was pretty much it. In a good way it was clean and simple for the aroma department.

Taste: Despite the lower portions of the brew appearing transparent and watery, that wasn't the case once I began to drink this. On the front of my tongue I got a helping of bread and cracker flavor along with a touch of sweetness. I even got a bit of citrus, most likely lemon albeit very faint. There also was a nice hop bite on the back. Still, I must admit that it was fairly strong for my taste.

Overall Rating: 

I enjoyed this as part of the Stoudt's sampler I purchased a good while ago. I measure German Pilseners based on comparisons to Troegs Sunshine Pils. This was surprisingly close. The cracker flavor was close to the typical biscuit I enjoy in this style of beer. To some, biscuit and cracker might be considered the same taste. I don't toss them in the same basket. Maybe that's why I'm a snob? Who knows. Not on par with Sunshien, but still an enjoyable drink.

Beer Review: Oskar Blues Mama's Little Yella Pils

Serving Type: Can

ABV: 5.3 percent

Appearance: This brew featured a straw gold body that was a little transparent, but still vivid enough in color to look great and appetizing. There was almost a two-inch head that was bubbly, white and had definitive bubbles. It was foamy at first, but faded back in quickly. Despite the appearance of the head, there weren't many apparent carbonation bubbles present to explain the head. Still, a pleasing brew to visually take in.

Smell: Very grainy and grassy. This was even a touch on the sweet side. No, make that a heavy helping of sweet!

Taste: Surprisingly, this was a bit fruity on the front of my tongue. It was an interesting flavor, but I couldn't exactly decipher what it was. The grassy flavors set in about mid-way back and helped to set up the traditional pilsner finish. I had to wait, but the hop and biscuit both bit me just as everything went down the pipe. These two flavors became more apparent in the aftertaste after a few seconds. Texture was definitely there, given the lack of carbonation that was visible.

Overall Rating: 

Definitely one of the best pilsners I've ever had. Certainly my favorite Oskar Blues offering. Sweet, yet it bites you before everything goes down. Maybe just a little more carbonation to help in the texture department. I'd also like to figure out what that fruity flavor was exactly!

Beer Review: Lagunitas Pils

Serving Type: Bottle

ABV: 6.20

Appearance: This beer had a golden color that was vivid and radiant. There was a finger's width of white and foamy head that appeared to have some slight sturdiness (and was almost soda-like), but eventually collapsed in on itself. Still an attractive site. Very fluffy and soft. Average lacing was left on the inside of the glass. Tons of bubbles danced around in this brew.

Smell: Just like a sweet Czech Pilsner should smell. It was very sweet and malty. There wasn't much hop presence, which I liked especially!

Taste: The flavor of the beer went much like the aroma began. It was very sweet on the front which eventually transpired into that biscuit and bitter finish. This was clean, crisp and amazingly refreshing. Still, there was a little bit of a hop bite on the finish that surprised me.

Overall Rating: 

This is definitely a winner. This adheres to the Czech style for he most part. Since this is from a west coast brewery, I wasn't totally surprised that a little hop bite was present. Even though I prefer the German style pilsners or a German Helles Lager, I think the Czech brews should be squarely focused on sweetness. I love Lagunitas, though!

Beer Heroes, Too

Honoring and appreciating members of police officers, armed forces and firefighters has become a staple at sporting events in this day and time. Honoring what they do and mean to our communities is something we all should do.

We had a little incident here in Munhall (a suburb of Pittsburgh) this week. It certainly wasn't the largest disaster in the history of mankind, but could have been devastating if our responders weren't there to help suppress the situation.

As some of you usually ask by this point in some of my posts, "What does this have to do with beer?" I say that I'll eventually get there. It's alright to acknowledge some people that are a lot braver than I am.

If you read the article that I linked, you'll notice the name of the chief of Munhall No. 4 close to me. Not only is Dan Rojtas considered one of those aforementioned heroes in his own right, but he can also be classified as a sort of craft beer hero.

Rojtas and his brother Bryan (also a firefighter at Montgomery County Fire Rescue Station 31) recently had an amazing idea to purchase 24 cases of pumpkin beer (even though it's out in the blazing heat of August) and sought out 23 other people to purchase a case that included one bottle of beer from each of the 24 cases. Get the gist? Also, this was of no profit to either. Their aim is strictly to try as many pumpkin beers as possible while being able to spread the wealth and tastiness of beer. Bryan was responsible for a few brews that aren't found in Pennsylvania being included in this "variety pack," which included the vaunted Schlafly Pumpkin. Something that I've never come across even with people out-of-state looking for it.

Rojtas assembling the "pumpkin variety" cases.

They plan on doing something similar in future seasons when the correct seasonal beers come out. This is certainly fodder for future posts in the future. I'm all for hoarding more beer.

Munhall No. 4 has also brought more than great deeds and beer to the surrounding area. It had a mini-fundraiser in recent weeks and sold hoagies (sub sandwiches for those of you outside of Western Pa.) from DiCarlo's here in Pittsburgh. Hoagies that go great with a Pilsner or a Helles Lager. I'll certainly try to let the local folk know the next time this happens.

Beer Review: Duquesne Pilsener

Serving Type: Bottle

ABV: Five percent

Appearance: Duquesne Pilsener pours a slightly hazy straw gold. Most of the body has portions that are that expected hay color, but a few sectors of the brew are more of a deep gold. Both factions of the beer's color was attractive. The head was bright white and foamy, but disposed of itself quickly and didn't leave any lacing at all. With the color taken into the equation, this did end up showing a few signs of weakness.

Smell: This smelled very sweet. Knowing that I enjoy a pilsner/pilsener with some biscuity bite to it, this struck me as a bit odd. It was hard to pick up the notes of yeast and grain that I also got, but I still was able to get those.

Taste: That odd sweetness that I noticed in the aroma was the main feature of the taste of this brew. There was also a little bit of graininess on the finish of the beer, but there wasn't much of a signature hoppy/biscuit bite on the back of my tongue like I usually enjoy with beers of this style. This did taste a bit watery to me.

Overall Rating: 

I'm not disappointed if I go to a place in the city and have to fall back on this beer. It's a local beer and I'm happy that it's back on the market. I'm a bit closer to understanding why people in my father's generation enjoy this beer and others like it. Some of them grew up drinking watered-down lagers. Maybe this appeals to them?

Beer Review: Schell's Pils

Serving Type: Bottle

ABV: 5.3 percent

Appearance: This pilsner poured something close to a neon gold. The color was quite vivid. The body was hazy, but the majority of the haze seemed to settle towards the upper portions of the glass. The bottom portions of the brew were a bit more transparent. The body was crowned by a half-inch head that came off as a lemon meringue color. The head would end up leaving tiny, intricate rings of lacing on the inside of the glass.

Smell: Initially, I picked up loads of grain and sweet corn. I instantly recalled the Brewers Association fiasco that involved August Schell Brewing Company and the use of adjuncts such as corn. I generally don't mind corn in my beer, but this was as close to a bag corn in the barn as I've been when drinking beer. It was interesting, but not totally sure if I enjoyed it. Consider me on the fence.

Taste: A positive of the corn came through in the taste department for me. The corn provided plenty of sweetness on the front. This beer also had a biscuity, bitter and very noticeable hop bite on the back.  The bitterness was a nice compliment to the sweetness and lingered in the aftertaste for quite a while. I couldn't see much carbonation due to the haze, but it was very noticeable once I started drinking. The texture of this beer is crisp and fizzy. I enjoyed it.

Overall Rating: 

The only thing I was feeling odd about was that I felt like I was opening a bag of corn on a farm and sniffing it. Maybe the corn was a bit too potent for me? The head and the body also had intriguing colors to gaze at. The taste left me refreshed as well. I'm glad I have a few more of these left from the sampler I bought.

All Pixelated

I'm not too sure if Duquesne Pilsener is any popular with the online craft community here in the Pittsburgh area, but it sure is with my father's generation. At least that's the case from what I can tell. I know he was really excited when the beer made its return to the Pittsburgh market in 2010.

Taking what I already knew into account, I bought him a case of Duquesne Pilsener a while back. I haven't had it in a while and decided to try one for myself. I was surprised to notice that it looked like the same guy on the label was being used. I don't know this for sure, but when you look close at the man hoisting the glass of beer on the label it's all pixelated.

My discipline in college was in the communication department. So, I have a little experience with design stuff. Still, I went to school with people that probably know a lot more than I would on this subject.

The res of the label looks fairly modern, but the figure looks like an original due to its lack of clarity. Maybe the brewers were so set on keeping with the original roots that they felt the need to drag the original image in there? Not dissing. Just noticing. I'm all for tradition.

Beer Review: Southern Tier Eurotrash Pilz

Serving Type: Bottle

ABV: 5.2 percent

Appearance: This beer poured a very, very light shade of yellow/gold. It is also easily seen through. If you put this up aside something like a Miller Lite, the only things that would distinguish this one would be the following two characteristics that I noticed. The head was a little thick initially, but settled in as a thin creamy layer that resonated for pretty much the rest of the drink. The carbonation rushed very fast towards the top. If you enlarge the photograph you'll notice that they're actually kind of blurred. They also formed their own twisting and bending column inside the brew. This resembled something like a waterspout.

Smell: This beer had an effervescent aroma of sweet maltiness. There actually was a ton of it. This was slightly unexpected. There was also a tad of floral notes that were able to poke through.

Taste: The label of the beer stated that this was brewed with two types hops as well as two malts. That really wasn't noticeable on my tongue. This beer was really sweet to the taste. Like a lot. Especially up front. This is a pilsner after all. So, I was looking forward to a little biscuit bit on the back, but I didn't get much. Everything seemed off-kilter in the balance department. Not much hop bite was present either.

Overall Rating: 

I like a good pilsner with a bit of bite in addition to its maltiness. I've always said that a balanced beer is a good beer. I like the sweetness of this, I just felt like the finish of this beer was kind of like when you have to leave a good movie early and miss the ending. I kept waiting for that bite, but it wasn't there.

Beer Review: Victory Prima Pils

Serving Type: Bottle

ABV: 5.3 percent

Appearance: Prima Pils certainly has the color of a pilsner. It's straw gold and has a thin layer of bubbly head to top it off. The head will leave a little bit of lacing inside the glass, but you have to look close to spot it. The body of the beer is really hazy. I'd bet any money that this pilsner is a touch hazier than some witbiers out there. The haze instilled fear in me that this is one of those brews that's overly-saturated in hops.

Smell: Overall, this brew smells very dry. It's very yeasty, bready and grassy. Any hop presence that's in the aroma is very subtle and comforting.

Taste: My fear was somewhat proved true once I was able to taste this beer. There was a flow of hops all of the way across the tongue. The yeast that was in the beer mixed well on the front, though. The biscuit taste that provides that characteristic bitterness we look for in pilsners was present on the finish. So, that was definitely a plus. This beer still tastes very crisp.

Overall Rating: 

If you're one of those that enjoy more hops present in beer then you will probably enjoy this one more than I did. For me, a great pilsner is all about that biscuit taste on the finish. I feel that hops should only be a compliment and not a focus. That's just my opinion. Whether you like this beer depends on your ability to tangle with its bite because it definitely has some.

Monday Rant: Bring on the Winter Warmers

I love both the summer and fall seasons when it comes to craft beer. I love having a zesty ale with strong hints of citrus, as well as a nice crisp pilsner you can only find during these same months. When the leaves begin to change color, I love enjoying buttery pumpkin ales and Marzenbiers with good caramel notes and a decent hop-kick.

We are now entering the most unexciting time of the year, at least in my eyes. Even though it still seems a little early (I'm sure many of us are getting used to our favorite seasonal beers being on the shelves earlier than usual) the winter warmers are starting to come out of the woodwork.

I've seen numerous Untappd check-ins including Full Pint Brewing's Festivus and Southern Tier's Old Man Winter. That tell's me that the warmer season is officially here.

Admittedly, the warmers aren't my favorites when it comes to beer. Many of them are very similar, to me. Loaded with spices. Some say that this season lends more opportunities to be creative for brewers. You're welcome to your own points, but I just can't differentiate when drinking many of these beers.

I will promise one thing for this season, though. I will be more willing to try winter warmers this year. I do enjoy Full Pint's Festivus and I love how it's named (I'm a huge Seinfeld fan). There is one winter beer that I'm looking forward too, though. Bell's Winter White Ale. One winter beer that's got a nice touch of spice, but is just different from many in the style.

Beer Review: Fat Heads Gudenhoppy Pils

Serving Type: Draft

ABV: Five percent

Appearance: Gudenhoppy Pils is a pretty shade of straw gold. It's not as clear as most pilsners, but it provides the eye with a decent haze within the body. There isn't much visible carbonation, but there' s a somewhat thick, white head atop the brew.

Smell: This beer's aroma consisted of plenty of bready and biscuity malts. There's also a burst of hop aroma that fills up your nostrils. In my opinion, the hops tend to be more dominant that what I prefer in a beer of this style.

Taste: The dominant hop aroma translates to the flavor as well. The hop flavor is a tad obnoxious. The biscuit flavor on the finish translates to the taste fairly well and adds an extra bit of floral sweetness to balance everything out.

Overall Rating: 

A really decent pilsner. The hop character is a little strong for my tastes. Many might like that type of flavor, though. The floral sweetness adds an interesting nook in this beer's flavor.