Red Hook Long Hammer IPA

Nick didn't mention this, but while he's gainfully employed, I'm living happily as a graduate student in the greater Boston area. As a result, I'll often be posting around midday about whatever beer I'm drinking at that very moment.

I recently learned that the package store (New England speak for liquor-mart) across the street from me lets their customers mix and match six packs. The other night, when I should have been preparing for an exam, I went across the street and bought three six packs, containing around 12 brews. (It was actually one of those beers that gave me the idea to start the blog--the otherwise excellent owner of the liquor store recommended the beer strongly, and it turned out to be reasonably awful.)

Anyway, one of the random brews I tossed in was Redhook's Long Hammer IPA. I've had a few beers from this brewery before--they generally make a solid beer. For what it's worth, the Copper Hook Spring Ale is one of the highlights, though you'd have to act fast to grab it--it's a seasonal, and ending soon this year.

Given the heat, however, and the slightly spicy food I had for lunch, I figured an IPA was in order today, and I grabbed the Long Hammer from my fridge. Remember, I'm a student, so clean dishes and glassware are not my top priority these days... unfortunately, this means that unless I'm at a bar, beer is generally coming straight from the bottle.

Even in a bottle and with a stuffed nose, this brew's aroma packs quite a punch--hops right out of the gate, and strong hops at that. There's a very slight hint of sweetness, but not much.

It's light on the tongue, and hoppy, hoppy, hoppy. As it's been warming up, it's gotten a little less drinkable and a tiny bit more bitter, but that's to be expected. For a beer with this much hop-action, it's quite drinkable, but not very exciting or surprising. It's not a really big-flavored beer, but it is pretty close to a textbook IPA. If that's what you're looking for (or if it's just a really hot day,) this one's a good buy.

A Beer Grows in Brooklyn

I just got back from a visit to some friends in New York, the greatest city in the world. On top of getting to see some of my favorite people, this served as a an excellent excuse to try some new brews and to seek out the Big Apple’s finest watering holes. This was a decent length trip and we had a lot of catching up (read: drinking) to do so I’ll cover the entirety of my beer adventures in the city over the course of a few different posts. For now I’ll just stick to the highlights of my first night in Brooklyn.

My buddy Alex took me to a place that appealed to my inner (and outer) dork: Barcade. The walls of this place are lined with dozens of arcade games form the early eighties. I was in heaven. We’re talking everything from old stand-bys like Ms. PacMan and Donkey Kong to more obscure ones like Alex’s favorite, Dig Dug. I, of course, spent the night battling it out with my drug of choice, Tetris.

But this place was way more than a dive with a gimmick. They feature 24 rotating taps and have a cask option. With so many different choices, we decided to go out on a limb and try the most obscure beer on the menu to start the night – Bad Move. A couple of sips of Rogue’s Chipotle Ale were more than enough for me. I don’t quite know what I expected from a beer made with jalapeños but I had high hopes given the other fantastic brews Rogue makes.

The Chipotle starts off well enough; it has the nice malty flavor and aroma of their Amber Ale but it all gets choked away when it hits the back of your tongue. Ugg. There’s also an aftertaste on this beer that I'm pretty sure caused me to gag and vomit at the same time (let’s call it “gavomitting”). Rogue: I love you guys, you’re great, but you can’t honestly tell me you were sober when you taste-tested this stuff. Take this one back to the drawing board or, better yet, forget it ever existed. I know I’m ready to.

Luckily, the next beer I tried turned out to be a much better investment: Middle Ages Brewing Company's Syracuse Pale Ale. I’m not much of a pale ale or an IPA guy but this one easily got my seal of approval. It’s relatively light and is very very smooth, which makes it a solid choice for the spring and summer months. The malts definitely dominate in this one but it still has a nice, if mild, hoppy finish. This was the first Middle Ages brew I’ve had so I’m excited to have a new microbrewery to investigate.

I tried a handful more beers that night, including the Victory Pils and the Climax ESB both of which earned a moderate but not an overwhelming recommendation. I’d write more about them but by that point I was paying a lot more attention to the Tetris machine than anything else so it wouldn’t really be fair.

All in all, it was great night and if you’re ever in the area, make a trip to Barcade. Where else can you drink a microbrew and play Frogger at the same time?

Welcome to Beer Happens!!!

So, the hope is that we can drink numerous different beers--at least one new beer a day--until we run out of new ones to try, and then post some thoughts on them here for our loyal readers.