Beer Review: Troegs Java Head Stout

Serving Type: Bottle

ABV: 7.5 percent

Appearance: It seems as if the stouts that put themselves ahead of others in the pack seem to be those that have a very dark, black color. Java Head Stout fits the bill in this department. The only presence of carbonation that's visible to the naked eye is what's in the foamy, tan head atop the brew. It's tan and is very reminiscent of what foams up when you pour a glass of cola. It was somewhat weak retention, but there was a nice thin layer of foam throughout the drink. I've seen confusion in reports of this being both a regular stout and an oatmeal stout. it is in fact an oatmeal if you check on the Troegs website. More evidence is in the beady lacing the tan head will leave inside your glass.

Smell: Overall, the theme of this beer is darkness. I caught a ton of dark and roasted coffee beans. Behind that was plenty of dark chocolate to counter the coffee's bitterness with something sweet. These two aromas are very powerful, but not overbearing to the point where it's unnecessary.

Taste: This beer kind of tasted like an intense mocha from an upscale coffee shop. The two dominant aspects of the beer's aroma were also the two dominant features in the taste. I'm a guy that doesn't like putting all kinds of junk in his coffee in the mornings. I like it black and the taste of this beer reminded me of that. The coffee was dark, roasty and robust. the sweetness of the chocolate complimented the bolder flavor very well. There was also a decent backbone of roasted malt on the front of the tongue. The flavors seem to mesh well as the beer warms, making it that much smoother despite the boldness.

Overall Rating: 

This is an excellent beer. If I had to say it was missing anything it would be an obvious presence of oats since this is an oatmeal stout. The only thing that shows is the beady lacing as I mentioned, but I didn't pick up any in the aroma or the taste. That might be attributed to the dominance of the coffee and dark chocolate that's in this brew. Still, those two flavors make this an awesome drink. This could go with a nice breakfast in some cases!

Beer Review: Troegs Pale Ale

Serving Type: Bottle

ABV: 5.4 percent

Appearance: Troegs Pale Ale pours somewhere in between a gold and a copper. There's a slight haziness throughout the body which also adds some attractiveness. There weren't a lot of bubbles floating throughout to provided any evidence of carbonation which helped to cast some doubt in my mind about the beer's texture. However, the head is white and frothy and had maybe a quarter of an inch thickness. It had above-average retention as the beer was consumed.

Smell: Initially, this beer had a strong aroma of grassiness. Some floral scents were also picked up. I was really reminded of being somewhere outdoors, most likely a forest. There was also a tad of yeastiness as well as a backbone of citrus from the hops.

Taste: I was worried that the hops would takeover the taste of this beer. I was pleasantly surprised. The hop character was balanced out by the hints of caramel on the front of the tongue. This beer finishes with an aftertaste that features the crust/yeast and that subtle paleness you look for.

Overall Rating: 

The only qualms I have with this beer is the slight lack in carbonation, which limits the texture of the beer a bit, and  possibly an overuse of hops. Again, this is most likely just my preference because I'm one to always go easy with hops. Maybe a bit more caramel? Otherwise, an awesome and enjoyable drink. I'm rarely disappointed by any Troegs offering.

Troegs to Produce Another Interesting Scratch Beer

Are you one of the many out there fearing something odd is going to happen on Dec. 21? Well, it looks like Troegs might have you covered for the big day.

According to John Trogner's Twitter account, Troegs intends on adding a Russian Imperial Stout to it's fascinating list of Scratch brews. The tweet only says that it's nicknamed "Impending Descent" paying homage to the end of the Mayan calendar on the 21st. I'm not entirely sure if that's what the beer will end up being named.

Regardless, you now have reasons to celebrate the pending end of civilization as we know it, a massive shift in the earth's gravitational pull or whatever you think might happen by that date. Don't take my word for it. You can be the judge! I just think it means the Pittsburgh Pirates might provide us with a winning season very soon.

Brewing a huge Russian Imperial Stout nicknamed "?impending descent?" today to celebrate the end of the Mayan Calendar ..released 12.21.12
— john trogner (@jtroegs) November 6, 2012

Big Pour Pre-Tasting at Blue Dust

Just as I said, I did make it down to Blue Dust on Friday evening to partake in the second night of the bar's Big Pour Pre-Tasting event. Craft breweries that were featured on Friday included Troegs, Victory and Dogfish Head.

The night was lead-off by the tapping of a Flying Mouflan firkin while it was on the bar. That was an exciting way to begin the event, even though I'm not the world's biggest fan of barley wines. It wouldn't have mattered to me what was in that firkin.

I decided to go with the Victory Flight since I have been wanting to try its Golden Monkey for a while now. The flight also included its new Festbier and I'm always up for trying a new Oktoberfest. The third brew that was aside the other two was Hop Wallop.

I was slightly disappointed with what I tried. The Golden Monkey I had seemed watered-down, the Festbier didn't taste anywhere close to an Oktoberfest and if any beer has "hop" in its name the odds are I won't like it.

I was also confused as to the true identities of both the Festbier and Hop Wallop. They both were hoppy as all hell. In my opinion, one thing that can screw up the tasting potential of a decent Oktoberfest is way too much hops. To be frank, I couldn't tell which I was drinking because of the intense hop presence. Look for more details on these brews when I actually get a chance do review them individually.

In My Book, Troegs Is the Best.

Troegs has some awesome labels, too.

Before you start to hammer away at me, I'm going to say it now. This isn't a post to hate on other breweries. After all, isn't the beautiful thing about loving beer is that many of us have our own preferences?

I've slowly settled upon the opinion I'm about to bestow upon you very soon over the last month or so. I've mentioned how this brewer has one of the best variety packs that is on the market. I've also never seen people flock to some of its seasonal beers like they have over the past year and a half.

Yuengling might be the private brewer that brings in the most, but in my opinion Troegs Brewing Company is the best I've come across. I can't name another brewer with a beer lineup that's as popular as what Troegs puts out.

When people painstakingly awaited the release of Nugget Nectar this spring, it was eerily similar to what electronics geeks to when a new iPhone comes out. Mad Elf also keeps us beer geeks coming back every year around Christmas.

HopBack Amber Ale is one of the best beers out there. Sunshine Pils is an exciting and hoppy take on a European Pilsner. People also rant and rave about both Java Head Stout and Troegenator Double Bock.

I can't forget about the Scratch Series. I can't think of another brewer off of the top of my head that does something like this, or at least has a series that's so deep. I haven't had the chance to have many of them, but just by reading about some of the brews I think the variety found in the Scratch Series rivals the creativity of a certain brewer in Delaware.

If there is another brewer with such a popular variety of beers, I'd sure like to know. There's no doubt that Pennsylvania has some awesome beer running through its taps and casks. I'm not here to put down any other brewery. Everyone has a favorite or two. I'm also certainly open to hearing some of yours as well.

Beer Snob Visits Blue and Gray Bar and Grill

Granted, the main square in downtown Gettysburg can be very difficult to navigate if you've never driven in a town circle before. Aside from that, if you can get yourself a decent parking place you can just walk to the northernmost corner of Baltimore Street and the circle to one of Gettysburg's newest bar/food additions.

After noticing that it was new as I arrived in town last week I did a bit of research on what this place was. Since the establishment is so new there isn't a completed website yet, but I did come across a feature story on it in Hanover's The Evening Sun.

It was then that I noticed two key things that Blue and Gray literally brought to the table. Its menu features 12 "Battlefield Burgers" that are named after generals that participated in the Battle of Gettysburg and 25 wing sauces/rubs named after certain military units that also fought in the battle.

The burgers are designed to emulate the general that it's named for and where they're from. A few good examples are that the General George Meade is a burger that's have burger and half cheesesteak as he is from Phiadelphia. The General Lewis A. Armistead gives your burger a helping of Carolina BBQ pulled pork as he is from North Carolina. The General John Fulton Reynolds puts a corn fritter on top of your beef patty since he was born in Lancaster. Get the drift?

I was coaxed into getting the General James Longstreet. Longstreet is from South Carolina, where apparently peanut butter and bacon is pretty popular. If you put two and two together you can see where I'm going with this one.Also, each burger comes out with a flag stuck in it. The version of the flag depends on what side your general falls on.

The caramelized onions were a perfect compliment. Awesome burger.

The Blue and Gray Bar and Grill also features a decent beer list that provides you with a taste of local brewing. Multiple Troegs, Roy Pitz and Lancaster beers can be found here to help you wash down whatever you choose from this fruitful menu.'

I can't forget about the aforementioned wings. The battle theme continues with wing flavors named 20th Maine (blueberry chipotle), Peach Orchard (peach habanero) and Irish Brigade (raspberry jalapeno). According to the bar's Twitter feed, there is also a Yuengling and chicken wing special ($5 pitchers and $.50 wings) that we are very accustomed to seeing around here.

All Roads Lead to Gettysburg

Tomorrow marks yet another one of my annual trips to Gettysburg National Military Park. Being the history buff that I am, I know that the saying "all roads lead to Gettysburg" held true on those three epic days in 1863. As easy as it was to fully concentrate an army in that day and age, it also appears that the town is also an excellent convergence point of fine beer and food.

McPherson barn along McPherson Ridge on the first day's field.

It gets pretty hot when you're east of the Blue Ridge and after a day of touring/studying some of America's most hallowed ground, you definitely want something refreshing towards the evening.

The town features some of the best period dining in all of Pennsylvania at both the Dobbin House Tavern, which features colonial-style items on its menu, and the Farnsworth House Inn, which gives patrons an 1863 dinner experience.

In terms of food, Gettysburg is in perfect position to dish out recipes from the Pennsylvania Dutch in the north as well as some Chesapeake seafood in the South.

As for beer, Troegs Brewing Company is right up the road in Harrisburg/Hershey. Troegs is arguably Pennsylvania's second most popular brewer, as well as my personal favorite, behind Yuengling & Son and will surely have most of the local bars stocked with many of my favorite brews.

Flying Dog Brewery is just to the South, out of Frederick. We also can't forget that just up Route 30 (or the Chambersburg Pike as we history buffs call it) is Hauser Estate Winery which provides the world with the infamous Jack's Hard Cider.

Appalachian Brewing Company has one of it's microbrewery/restaurants just off of Buford Avenue and right next to the house that General Robert E. Lee designated as his headquarters. There's plenty to eat and drink in Gettysburg.

This week might be somewhat abbreviated in terms of posts since I'm embarking on this trip. I will try to have a beer review for tomorrow's post and will try to document as much as possible the food and drink I come across while out east. Make sure you're tuning into my Twitter feed this weekend while I'm there. I'll also try to incorporate some of what I experience into a post or two for next week.

Troegs Nugget Nectar is on the Horizon

Two days ago I tweeted about an announcement on the Troegs website about the release of its infamous Nugget Nectar. According to the announcement, wholesalers will have the beer in custody between the Feb. 16 (today) and 24.

I'll try to keep an eye out for when it shows in my area. Let me know if it shows up near you as well. I'm just going to guess here, but Blue Dust in Homestead makes a habit of getting things earlier than other places. If I have time tomorrow or Friday evening I'll try to stop down.

The moment everyone has been waiting for is really close. I've come across a few pictures on Twitter of people close to and/or associated with Troegs who have their cases already.

I'm still really excited to try this beer. I've rarely been disappointed with beers from Troegs. I love the Sunshine Pils, Hopback Amber Ale and the Troegenator Doublebock. I have plenty of reason to believe I will fall in love with this concoction as well.

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