Holy Thursday: Hops at Pipers and Blue Dust

"They went with divine intentions of quenching their dry thirsts, but then proclaimed; thine ale tastes bittereth!"

Once again on the theme of the newly-released hoppy brews (a time of year in which I disdain.). I have some good news for all of you fans of hops. All of the hop bombs are currently in the Pittsburgh market as I see it.

Two of my favorite places in the entire area for craft brews and pub grub are currently boasting the presence of both Lagunitas Sucks and Troegs Nugget Nectar. The beers are listed on Blue Dust's (close to me here in Munhall) website draft list and on some of Pipers Pub's social media pages. Pipers is even boasting a battle between good and evil to the death! Sorry, I meant East and West coast.

Hell, If I end up at either establishment maybe I'll even go as far as trying one or the other.

Just vented firkins of @TroegsBeer Nugget Nectar & @lagunitasbruhws Sucks. East Coast vs West Coast hop war begins tomorrow.
— Pipers Pub (@piperspub) January 29, 2014

Holy Thursday is a weekly post (usually every week) generally about beer. It includes almost any topic relating to beer, but with a certain spin. A slightly religious spin Still, I'm not doing it to preach anything but beer. I'm just poking fun at myself for a being a terrible mass attendee!

Monday Rant: Not Too Hop-Cited

Many seasonal beer posts around the blogosphere begin in this sort of fashion. I typically start by saying it's that time of the year again and it certainly is. If you check out the social media accounts of your favorite beer distributors and shops I'm sure you'll find their mentions and walls cluttered with questions pertaining to when they will have Bell's Hopslam and Troegs Nugget Nectar in stock.

I had both brews for the first time last year. Suffice to say, Hopslam tasted pretty close to pure hop oil. It didn't taste balanced to me at all, but Nugget Nectar was more on that side. I decided that I could definitely give Nugget Nectar a few more goes.

I know I call myself a "beer snob," but in the craft beer world I could really be classified as more of a beer geek. I only named this blog as such and took on the Twitter handle I have because that's what I've been referred to over the years during my summer job throughout college.

I've only ever deleted a comment once in the young history of this blog. This one time I came across what could be referred to as a "beer snob." This person didn't approve of my thoughts on Hopslam and even went as far to throw the word irresponsible when he saw that I gave Blue Moon's Summer Honey Ale a better rating than his beloved ale saturated with hops.

The beer isn't trash, but I had to dig in the trash to find this old photo.

Trying and experiencing different type's of beer is the beautiful thing about craft beer. I'm all for civilized conversation when discussing beers (I'm especially alright with it in my comments section), but I don't see the need to bring it to insults. That's where I believe the line is when it comes to being what we classify as either a "snob" or a "geek."

Apologies in advance, but I don't hold biases towards certain breweries and against others. If I think a beer tastes, looks and smells better than another (even if it has a huge following) I'm going to rate it higher and enjoy it more. I obviously didn't enjoy Hopslam, but the ironic thing is that I love most everything else made by Bell's. I just don't particularly enjoy beer's that have a ton of hops. That's not saying that you're wrong for liking them that way. We all have our own preferences, correct?

So, please have all of the Hopslam you want this year. I certainly won't be keeping any away from you. I also won't judge you if you really enjoy it.

Post No. 150: A Case of Nostalgia

Compared to numerous other beer and food pairing blogs out there, this one is still in its infancy when I say that this is my 150th post. I figured that I should pick out a few of my favorite images I've gathered and posted on this blog to highlight some of my beer drinking and food eating adventures.

This one is from my Troegs Nugget Nectar review. From my recollection, this is one of the first beer reviews I did with my current digital camera. It was taken the night the beer was tapped at Blue Dust in Homestead, which means it was one of the first tappings of Nugget Nectar in all of Pittsburgh.

When you blow the picture up, you can see the detail in both the body and the carbonation of the beer. Nugget Nectar appears to have a lovely color as well. To me, this looks like a perfect pour. The crown of the beer looks well bogged down in the top of the glass and I also love how the beer seems to poke out from the darkness like it's some holy entity.

I fell in love with this image as soon as I uploaded the set from the camera. I've grown to enjoy looking at it so much, that I've tried to incorporate it into many of the backgrounds I've experimented with over the last year or so that I've been writing this blog.

This next one is from my post about a visit to Fat Head's Pittsburgh. After trying a few great beers on tap, my stomach was craving one of my favorite aphrodisiacs, chicken wings. Upon checking out the sauces Fat Head's had available I saw the intriguing Jalapeno Cheddar flavor.

I had to try them. The sauce is pretty much spicy cheese sauce with jalapeno chunks spread about in it, but it was an adventurous meal.

Did you think I was really going to have only one photograph featuring a lovely-looking beer? This is a really dark one, but also extremely delicious. It's from my Mary's Maple Porter review a few months back.

It was just a limited-release by Brooklyn Brewery and I was lucky to sample it, once again at the craft beer capitol of Pittsburgh, at Blue Dust.

I sometimes find it fascinating to stare at the heads of darker beers and inspect the different shades of beige and off-white colors they exhibit.

This one had a head that was more than the thickness of two fingers and was so bubbly. It had such an interesting texture. Complimenting the head was one dark abyss of a body.

The taste of this beer was pretty awesome. If I could pour this over pancakes in the morning, I'm sure it would be an enhancement from syrup.

The next two are from a few very recent posts, both of which were on my trip to Gettysburg. This burger shot is from the town's newest bar and grill joint, the Blue and Gray Bar and Grill. If you read my post about it, you'll see a few examples of the exotic, Civil War themed burgers the place has on its menu.

This one was in a typical southern tradition and featured peanut butter and bacon. One of the best burgers I've ever eaten. There's plenty more where that came from.

This last one is from my recent review of Appalachian Brewing's Cream Ale. I've been known to have some sort of an attraction to beers with foaming heads in pint glasses, but this one was a different take.

The beer's head wasn't as active as some others are, but was just thick enough to appear as an appetizing layer of cream. The beer's body was hazy and opaque, but it just had an effervescence to it that was extremely appealing. The deep gold in the body and the white creminess of the head played off of each other well. The rustic atmosphere in the photograph's background doesn't hurt either.

 The sweetness on the front and the hop character and tanginess on the back also helped me love this beer.

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.

Seasonal Brews: Should They Be Year-Round Sellers?

An interesting link I came across over at Beer Street Journal announced an interesting anecdote as well as striking a chord in my mind. Beer Street Journal's news is that Lagunitas Brewing Company plans to implement its seasonal Lagunitas Sucks Holiday Ale into the year-round rotation.

The chord that was struck was a thought that maybe some other breweries should take the same approach with some of their own popular seasonal beers. I think that it's an interesting question. How would some of you hop heads out there enjoy having Bells Hopslam or Troegs Nugget Nectar all year long at your local drinking tavern?

I'm also interested in knowing if certain brewers have at least thought about a proposition as such. Would in be beneficial financially or would it make them take a hit?

I'm the type that appreciates and enjoys the wait for said beers. There's nothing like having a pumpkin ale during the fall or around Thanksgiving dinner. I'm sure some of you enjoy a good number of winter warmers aside the fireplace on nippy evenings. The problem in my eyes is that drinking either of those two styles on a hot day after work in the summer is somewhat pointless.

I can understand that some brewers are forced to only produce certain beers at certain times of the year due to ingredients such as ingredients, etc., but it's definitely an interesting proposition to consider.

I don't know of any other breweries in particular that decided to convert a popular seasonal beer into one that sells all year long, but I wouldn't be surprised to see a slight domino effect after reading this Lagunitas news.

 

Beer Review: Troegs Nugget Nectar

Serving Type: Draft

ABV: 7.5 percent

Appearance: Nugget Nectar is quite an attractive beer. It reminds me of some of the great pumpkin ales I was fortunate enough to try this past fall. It has a very dark amber tone, but it has such great clarity that you can still see right through it. The head is very white and fizzy. The carbonation is very potent.

Smell: I haven't come across a scent like Nugget Nectar's before. I expected plenty of strong hops, but instead received a helping of floral honey. Such a sweet and pleasant aroma.

Taste: At first this beer is bitter due to the hops overload, but a tad of citrus flavor balances it out before you get a case of bad beer face. It has a very crisp taste. It's also one of those beers that gives you more flavor as it gets closer to room temperature.

Overall Rating:    

This beer came with a lot of hype. It was the same way with Bell's Hopslam, but I have rarely been disappointed with anything by Troegs in the past. This beer was an adventure since I'm not the biggest of hop heads, but I can see why some enjoy it so much.

Make sure you're following the Beer Snob on Twitter!

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.

Make sure you're following the Beer Snob on Twitter!

Seasonal Look-Ahead: Troegs Nugget Nectar

This is my first attempt at a new idea I've had recently. I've given some thought to writing a few look-ahead posts once in a while concerning seasonal craft brews that I'm either in love with or haven't tried yet, but have heard some great things.

Tomorrow is the first day of February. For the craft beer folk in Pennsylvania this means one thing: the release of Troegs Nugget Nectar, according to the brewery's website. When Bell's Hopslam Ale hit the market a few weeks ago, it seemed to me that two of the hoppiest beers some look forward two are these two.

I was fortunate to be able to try Hopslam and am now looking forward to sampling Nugget Nectar. The beer sounds delightful, per the beer's description on the site:

"Squeeze those hops for all they're worth and prepare to pucker up: Nugget Nectar Ale, will take hopheads to nirvana with a heady collection of Nugget, Warrior and Tomahawk hops. Starting with the same base ingredients of our flagship Hopback Amber Ale, Nugget Nectar intensifies the malt and hop flavors to create an explosive hop experience."

I was also able to try the intermediately-hopped Hopback Amber Ale a while back and really enjoyed that. If that's a hint as to what Nugget Nectar will be like then I can't wait to get some of it on my taste buds.