The Friday Night 6 Pack Session

[Beerlust]

Am still in recovery mode after the Xmas/New Year bedlam period & just enjoying the day off work today & not doing much at all.

 

My kegs are empty & I should be cleaning both & filling one of them right now, but I CBB right now.

 

Currently enjoying a steady stream of my preferred commercial session beer (Coopers Pale Ale), & have just cracked a Little Creatures Pale Ale. Both enjoyable from my standpoint, but being the hop-head I am, am really enjoying the LC Pale right now after not having one in a while.

 

Will slip a further few CPA's down after this one, then pour myself the SNPA sitting in the back of the fridge & look forward to that for the same reason.

 

One could easily get used to these off work rest days!

 

 

Cheers & good brewing guys,

 

Lusty.

 

 

[Hairy]

The LCPA is still a nice drop.

 

I went to the 21st Amendment a Brewery Bar in San Francisco tonight; they have some really nice beers.

 

Then I went to a little bar with my wife. We had 5 'craft' beers between us and we got the bill for $15. WTF? $3 a beer is awesome.

[Beerlust]

The LCPA is still a nice drop.

 

I went to the 21st Amendment a Brewery Bar in San Francisco tonight; they have some really nice beers.

 

Then I went to a little bar with my wife. We had 5 'craft' beers between us and we got the bill for $15. WTF? $3 a beer is awesome.

Since no-one else will come out & say it' date=' I will.

 

Right now you suck Hairy! (very envious!) [img']tongue[/img]

 

Seriously though, I've enjoyed reading your posts from over there in the big U...S of A & am glad you're enjoying yourself.

 

I expect a condensation of the beers you've sampled over there will result in some great recipe ideas on your part once back in AUS & back brewing again.

 

Putting up with your very envious posts until that time will hopefully be worth it?

 

Cheers,

 

Lusty.

[porschemad911]

Yep, very jealous indeed! Of both the beer and the bball games ...

[Beerlust]

Just finished the SNPA & enjoyed it very much. That said, to this point I've never sampled the LCPA & SNPA in close proximity enough to gauge which one I preferred over the other.

 

Very similar beers in many ways, & excusing possible bottle date discrepancies, I preferred the LCPA.

 

Given a recent stir to Otto Von Blotto (whom really enjoys the SNPA), I'd say the LCPA has more balls!

 

 

Cheers,

 

Lusty.

[porschemad911]

I'd say the LCPA has more balls!

Oh definitely it does! SNPA has been toned down a bit over the years, and I find LCPA has a slightly more aggressive hop presence and not as much malt sweetness.

[Hairy]

Belching Beaver Peanut Butter Stout. Yeah baby! (A half pint was probably enough though).

 

I'm glad it didn't taste like a belching beaver

 

I also called into Stone Brewery at Escondido today. This place was massive and had one of the best beer gardens I have been to. If you are ever near Sab Diego then I recommend calling in.

[Magnaman]

If you are ever near Sab Diego then I recommend calling in.

 

 

Hey Hairy is that near San Diego?

 

Glad your having a good time in Yankeeland.

 

Cheers

[Hairy]

If you are ever near Sab Diego then I recommend calling in.

 

 

Hey Hairy is that near San Diego?

 

Glad your having a good time in Yankeeland.

 

Cheers

It is only referred to as San Diego if you are sober

[porschemad911]

Enjoyed a few on tap last night at a local pub.

 

I had a nice sampler of 200ml each of Bridge Road Little Bling, Murray's Fred and another IPA that escapes me (this one had the most hop presence though). All not too bad, but I'd say the Little Bling was the best beer. And you can drink the most of it!

 

Then I tried a 250ml pour of Bridge Road Bling Bling. Pretty good for sipping, but it still sort of reminded me why I don't really like imperial IPAs. The high ABV combined with all the hops just makes them a bit too sticky and sweet for me. I'll take a 6.5 - 7% ABV IPA with more hops than normal instead

 

Hairy, what was your conclusion after coming back from the land that invented the imperial IPA and being able to try them fresh? You prefer those, standard IPAs, amber ales or pale ales?

[Hairy]

Enjoyed a few on tap last night at a local pub.

 

I had a nice sampler of 200ml each of Bridge Road Little Bling' date=' Murray's Fred and another IPA that escapes me (this one had the most hop presence though). All not too bad, but I'd say the Little Bling was the best beer. And you can drink the most of it!

 

Then I tried a 250ml pour of Bridge Road Bling Bling. Pretty good for sipping, but it still sort of reminded me why I don't really like imperial IPAs. The high ABV combined with all the hops just makes them a bit too sticky and sweet for me. I'll take a 6.5 - 7% ABV IPA with more hops than normal instead [img']biggrin[/img]

 

Hairy, what was your conclusion after coming back from the land that invented the imperial IPA and being able to try them fresh? You prefer those, standard IPAs, amber ales or pale ales?

I tried the Little Bling before Christmas and thought it was better than both the Bling IPA and the Bling Bling. It is a nice sessionable beer

 

As for the beers in the US, it was great trying beers that were fresh. I think I prefer the double/imperial IPAs over standard IPAs purely for the extra body in the beer. I sometimes found the standard IPAs a little dry. But I wasn't having big drinking sessions, just a few beers each night.

 

Overall, I liked the more malty beers like Amber ales and brown ales. I think I may have suffered hop fatigue which has influenced my decision

[porschemad911]

Well I tried a very nice beer yesterday, the Celt Golden Ale. I've seen it in Dan's for a while now and never tried it before. Friday night I picked it up and read 46 IBUs, and dry hopped a mixture of UK, US and NZ hops. Never having tried a Welsh beer before I thought I'd give it a go. It was really good! Really nice hop flavour and aroma, and just the right body and mouthfeel for the warm weather. I noticed a very subtle touch of honeyed malt sweetness, but nothing like as much as the typical American pale ale for example. Since I know nothing about Welsh beer and I usually find commercial Golden Ales fairly bland, this was a really nice surprise!

[Anzacpaul]

I'm trying Red Trolley Ale tonight, not a bad drop quite strong on the abv, so probably don't need anymore than a six pack.

[Hairy]

I'm trying Red Trolley Ale tonight' date=' not a bad drop quite strong on the abv, so probably don't need anymore than a six pack. [/quote']

I like the Red Trolley Ale; all the Karl Strauss beers I have tried have been really nice.

 

I was recently in California Adventure Land (a part of Disneyland) and in one the food areas was a Karl Strauss beer truck with the standard range plus some seasonal beers. That is what a theme needs

[Scottie]

John Boston Golden Ale and James Squire Hop Thief 7. Different styles but the JSHT wins hands down. Now I need to order some Mosaic and put one of these babies down. I have already nailed the grain bill with my accidental Hop Thief. I will leave the dusty old bottle out of this recipe though.

 

Cheers & Beers

Scottie

Valley Brew

[porschemad911]

Tonight I decided to have a few nice drinks while watching 'The Road':

• 2 x my home brewed Belgian Pale / Saison - nearly the pick of the night, I enjoyed this equally to the Bridge Road Pale Ale (maybe *slightly* more, although they're very different)
  
• White Rabbit Pale Ale - I bought one out of curiousity, but it's pretty ordinary and I won't buy it again ... to me it tastes like a Tooheys Darling Ale fermented with a Belgian yeast
  
• Bridge Road Beechworth Pale Ale - really balanced and tasty - I enjoyed this equally to my home brew
  
• Coopers Sparkling Ale - Australia's only style in the BJCP guidelines and every time I have one I can see why, it's just a great beer, plenty of malt but not too sweet or lifeless like some of the British, Scottish, German and American malt-forward beers can be
  
• Coopers Celebration Ale - I bought this to see whether I prefer it to the Sparkling ... and I'd have to say no, the Sparkling's a better beer. The Celebration Ale's not bad, much darker and with a noticeable late hop presence, but doesn't have the balance and beautiful mouthfeel
  

 

For tomorrow's Batch 31 IPA brew day I've got a few good ones waiting in the fridge!

• Burleigh Brewing Fig Jam IPA
  
• Shepherd Neame IPA
  
• Feral Smoked Porter
  
• Matilda Bay Alpha
  
• Timothy Taylor's Landlord
  

 

Edit: well would you look at that, it's the first time I've posted an actual Friday 6-pack! Woohoo!

[Robert1525229646]

Tonight I decided to have a few nice drinks while watching 'The Road':

 

I would think a bottle of rotgut rum or 'shine would be a better pairing for that movie.

 

I liked it well enough for what it was' date=' but I basically only watched it because I'd read the book. My wife was like "What the hell did we just watch?" I warned her, but it's still a punch in the mouth.

 

It's the first and only (so far) McCarthy I've ever read - I thought I was gonna hate it 'cause I was struggling to get past the idiosyncrasies of his writing, but after I adjusted (like getting used to somebody's think accent), I ate it up. You ought to be feeling pretty secure in yourself before tackling something like that, I think. It should probably carry a disclaimer. [img']pouty[/img]

[porschemad911]

Yes Robert, it paints a pretty stark and horrific contrast to life as I know it. I found it a really well done movie, by far the best post-apocalyptic movie I have watched. It would have been good in the cinema for extra immersion, even on my small screen it did a good job of helping me identify with the characters and their struggle. I won't be recommending it to my wife to watch though. I'm interested in reading the book after seeing it, since I find I usually enjoy the book much more than the movie it is based on.

[Mattrox]

So I did it on Saturday night....

 

8 degrees Irish red ale - nice

Hitachino Nest Red Rice ale, not bad.... Not awesome

War Hog mmmmm Beeeer, very good.

Karma Citra Black IPA - dark malts and hops are very interesting. Me likes.

Stone ruination double IPA- I'm ruined, too dank for me, slightly....and now too buzzed to enjoy ;

Bierhaus Extra hopped IPA because Ruination killed my taste buds.

 

Too many >7% beers in 1 night.

[Mattrox]

 

"It was only a mixed six pack honey."

 

 

(It doesn't quite work because she has quit alcohol all together as a fitness thing and has lost heaps of weight and is hotter than when she was 18 and I'm a beer tragic. God I love her and she's awesome, but I'm in so much trouble in the morning. Pray for me.)

 

 

[porschemad911]

Did you survive Mattrox?

 

Continuing the theme of sampling from Friday night, I enjoyed a few tasty beers yesterday over the brew day and dinner:

• Fig Jam IPA - ok, but a bit average, would be better at a slightly lower ABV than the actual 7%
  
• Matilda Bay Alpha - pretty good pale ale! If this was what Fat Yak was like I wouldn't mind going for a drink in the CUB pubs more often
  
• Feral Smoked porter - tasted kind of like bacon, not bad, easy drinking and pleasant enough but not remarkeable
  
• Timothy Taylor's Landlord - yum! My favourite of the day ...
  
• Shepherd Neame IPA - pretty tasty actually, but slightly light on in body compared with what I was hoping for
  

[Hairy]

Matilda Bay Alpha is an under appreciated pale ale. It is the best beer in their range.

 

I bought a 6 pack of Little Creatures Pale Ale on Australia Day. It had been a while since I had tried it and I had forgotten how nice a beer it is. Very drinkable.

[Mattrox]

Did you survive Mattrox?

 

Continuing the theme of sampling from Friday night' date=' I enjoyed a few tasty beers yesterday over the brew day and dinner:

[list']

[*] Fig Jam IPA - ok, but a bit average, would be better at a slightly lower ABV than the actual 7%

[*] Matilda Bay Alpha - pretty good pale ale! If this was what Fat Yak was like I wouldn't mind going for a drink in the CUB pubs more often

[*] Feral Smoked porter - tasted kind of like bacon, not bad, easy drinking and pleasant enough but not remarkeable

[*] Timothy Taylor's Landlord - yum! My favourite of the day ...

[*] Shepherd Neame IPA - pretty tasty actually, but slightly light on in body compared with what I was hoping for

 

Lol I survived.

 

I'm going to have to try the Bierhaus IPA again as I think the hop character was drowned out by the resinous hops from the Ruination.

 

And I wasn't in trouble either, got the lawn done and chook cage cleaned out while she was at gym.

 

 

Now, time for a 2nd breakfast of bacon and eggs.

 

A nice mixed 6 you have there.

[Chuznut]

So I did it on Saturday night....

 

8 degrees Irish red ale - nice

Hitachino Nest Red Rice ale' date=' not bad.... Not awesome

War Hog mmmmm Beeeer, very good.

Karma Citra Black IPA - dark malts and hops are very interesting. Me likes.

Stone ruination double IPA- I'm ruined, too dank for me, slightly....and now too buzzed to enjoy ;

Bierhaus Extra hopped IPA because Ruination killed my taste buds.

 

Too many >7% beers in 1 night.[/quote']

 

Hey Mattrox,

 

Where'd you get the War Hog from? I've been wanting to try this, but didn't think that there were any left?

[Mattrox]

So I did it on Saturday night....

 

8 degrees Irish red ale - nice

Hitachino Nest Red Rice ale' date=' not bad.... Not awesome

War Hog mmmmm Beeeer, very good.

Karma Citra Black IPA - dark malts and hops are very interesting. Me likes.

Stone ruination double IPA- I'm ruined, too dank for me, slightly....and now too buzzed to enjoy ;

Bierhaus Extra hopped IPA because Ruination killed my taste buds.

 

Too many >7% beers in 1 night.[/quote']

 

Hey Mattrox,

 

Where'd you get the War Hog from? I've been wanting to try this, but didn't think that there were any left?

 

Booze Brothers on Unley Rd. There were some left.