What're you drinking right now?

[MattS]

Sawdust City - 1606

What did you think of this? I found my first bottle a little underwhelming

I had it on draft at Bar Hop on Friday and thought it was amazing. Hit the notes of stout, wine and fruit, whilst still being pretty low ABV and therefore sessionable.

[AugustusRex]

Too bad Andechs isn't there. I'm interested in hearing the comparisons.

I find Andechs incredibly sweet. It's a beautiful spot to drink beer, but haven't fallen in love with the beer itself.

I haven't had Andechs' doppelbock for a couple years now, but I had Weihenstepaner Korbinian and found it cloying. Reminded me of diet coke. Maybe I would feel the same way about the Andechs if I had it again. Celebrator is a whole different beast, I'm sure I'll be a fan of that one for the long run.

[Provost Drunk]

Enjoying a doppelbock taste-off with some buddies:

Paulaner Salvator
Augustiner Maximator
Doppel Hirsch Doppelbock
Miltenberger Doppelbock
Spaten Optimator
Ayinger Celebrator
Amsterdam Springbock
Les Trois Mousquetaire Doppelbock
Cameron's Deviator

Too bad Andechs isn't there. I'm interested in hearing the comparisons.

Yes, sadly no Andechs - impossible to get them all. I've actually never had the Andechscher Doppelbock but would love to try it, especially following this taste-off. Speaking of klosterbier, it also would have been great to include Weltenburger Kloster Asam Bock which I think would have rated well comparatively. By memory (and I haven't had an Asam Bock in well over a year) it has more pronounced raisin notes and is more bread-y than the ones we drank on Friday.

The consensus favourite (including my personal pick) from the group above was the Celebrator. It has more of a roasted malt flavour and a sweetness that tends more towards toffee notes than dried fruit. Impressive that this beer had the lowest ABV of the bunch - it certainly wasn't lacking in flavour and usually I tend to favour stronger beers when doing these types of comparisons.

I found the three beers from the Munich-based breweries to be fairly similar, but would rank Augustiner Maximator as the best and Paulaner Salvator the worst, with Spaten Optimator falling in the middle (though closer to Maximator). The Salvator failed to impress - I just found it to be less profoundly flavourful than the other two.

Doppel Hirsch was also fairly similar to the three from Munich. A touch sweeter and lighter in body. Average overall.

The Miltenberger Doppelbock was interesting. It had a distinct sweet nuttiness / marzipan flavour that was very prominent up front and I really enjoyed. But once those flavours faded, there was sort of a residual soapiness that was a bit offputting and I thought it finished a bit weak.

I would say that this is one category where the local brewers have some work to do to catch up to their old world compatriots. The Amsterdam Springbock had a nice roasted maltiness to it (in the Celebrator vein), but was a little too hop-forward for the style. That's not to say that it's a hoppy beer, just that the hops were definitely more present (on the nose and palate) than the other bocks and it seemed a bit distracting. The LTM Doppelbock was the sweetest of the bunch - more of a candied fruit quality. My palate is more forgiving of sweetness than my buddies' so I still enjoyed this one overall, but it lacked the complexity of some of the others. The Deviator was the bourbon barrel aged edition, so right off the bat didn't exactly belong. I found the bourbon distracting and couldn't get a good read on the underlying beer (we also intentionally waited to crack this beer last so that we didn't blow out or tastebuds on bourbon and by then, naturally, I was nearly as perceptive as I was earlier in the night).

[Belgian]

More love for Andechser, not cloying to me but then I like the malt. Paulaner Salvator on draught was just a whole different thing, unpasteurized and really complex with ale-like dark fruits. I got very wobbly on Salvator one evening at Paulaner Am Roten Ochsen in Köln! Over here, Ayinger Celebrator just has more power.

All the Andechser beers to me are extremely solid in the bottle when I find them over there, really flavorful. Have yet to go to Kloster Andechs though I stayed just a half hour away on the other side of the Starnberger See (1hr 40 by bike.)

Maybe I'll rent a bike or something next time I stay near Munich!

I did take the scenic river trip to Kloster Weltenburg last time I was in Bavaria. It takes time but it's a novel way to go taste some beers. Then there was this place...

[napoleon]

All the Andechser beers to me are extremely solid in the bottle when I find them over there, really flavorful. Have yet to go to Kloster Andechs though I stayed just a half hour away on the other side of the Starnberger See (1hr 40 by bike.)

If you go to Kloster Andechs on a sunny weekend, you'll really have a great and fairly authentic time. It's not a place that sees many foreign tourists. Beautiful veranda with an oom-pah band, friendly germans, and beer that's cheap and tasty. Food is, well, German, but that's not the point anyway.

[Belgian]

All the Andechser beers to me are extremely solid in the bottle when I find them over there, really flavorful. Have yet to go to Kloster Andechs though I stayed just a half hour away on the other side of the Starnberger See (1hr 40 by bike.)

If you go to Kloster Andechs on a sunny weekend, you'll really have a great and fairly authentic time. It's not a place that sees many foreign tourists. Beautiful veranda with an oom-pah band...

I think my uncle finds it kitschy for some reason. But I'll go when I can. I love Munich quite a bit since staying there once for a week.

The criticalness of Bavarians does allow for some (to me) great food, often in unexpected out-of-the-way taverns and country Biergartens.

[cratez]

At Bell's Brewery:
Bell's Boiling Pot Ale (sample)
Bell's OG Twoey (draft)
Bell's Belgian Style Pale Ale (sample)
Bell's Ales for ALS (draft)

Scored a bunch of Three Floyds Space Station Middle Finger, Backmasking Oatmeal Stout, Yum Yum ASA, and Alpha King at Kahn's, and a case of Expedition Stout and other goodies at Bell's, so a pretty decent haul overall. No Oracle to be had on my visit, but the Best Brown Ale and Oktoberfest are always good standbys. This should hold me over until the Winter Release, as I don't plan to buy much from the underwhelming Fall & Halloween releases.

Over the last week at home:
Bell’s Porter
Bell’s Two Hearted Ale
Bell’s Kalamazoo Stout
Bell’s Oberon Ale

Right now:
Sun King Osiris Pale Ale

[Provost Drunk]

Last night at Beer Bistro:

Zundert Trappist
Brasserie LeFort Vander Ghinste
Freigeist Abraxxxas
Struise Pannepot Grand Riserva (2005)

[Winter is Coming]

Sawdust City - 1606

What did you think of this? I found my first bottle a little underwhelming

I found this one to be quite enjoyable, the stout characteristics balanced perfectly with the tanic barrel and fruit ester flavours. I attribute this balance to the low abv (5.7%) which didn't overshadow the barrel/raspberry elements which sometimes happens with bigger beers. I've posted a youtube review of this beer with the same user name. Check it out.

[Belgian]

Aged Saison Dupont and a 2012 Orval.

[cheechonaleash]

Drinking a Black Sheep from New Limburg Brewing in Nixon, Ontario. Just opened a few weeks ago. Specializing in Belgian styled beers, this one is a milk stout and doesn't really fit the Belgian thing, hence the name.

Decent stuff so far. Check then out if you're in the area!

[AugustusRex]

Aged Saison Dupont and a 2012 Orval.

Orval and Dupont are two of my favourite beers. I find I love the hops in Orval so much that I prefer just a touch of funk to add complexity. I'm drinking the Jan 2015 batch right now, and it is one remarkable beer.

My last 750 of Dupont is sitting in the fridge, it's depressing seeing it go. If you can find the dry hopped version give it a try. Apparently all Saison Dupont was dry hopped until the early 90s, when they replaced the dry hopping with a late addition in the boil.

[Belgian]

My last 750 of Dupont is sitting in the fridge, it's depressing seeing it go. If you can find the dry hopped version give it a try. Apparently all Saison Dupont was dry hopped until the early 90s, when they replaced the dry hopping with a late addition in the boil.

I have a magnum of Avec Les Bons Voeux from last Xmas, no doubt will be a killer though I only had it on tap once.


And of special edition bottlings I've actually tasted I would love to have this 2013 release back again - Chimay 150 / Spéciale Cent Cinquante. Still got one! Can't believe it dodn't come back.

[sofakingdrunk]

Bolshevik bastard
Stewart's cauld reekie(really a bit disappointing, after the BB)

[napoleon]

Last night at Beer Bistro:

Zundert Trappist
Brasserie LeFort Vander Ghinste
Freigeist Abraxxxas
Struise Pannepot Grand Riserva (2005)

That's an expensive night at beer bistro! I hope were entertaining some corporate clients!