Block 15 Brewing Company Golden Ticket

10.75% ABV Bottled January 2018
Beer Advocate score - 3.96/5 (1 review)
Untappd score 4.12/5

22C. American Barleywine

A well-hopped American interpretation of the richest and strongest of the English ales. The hop character should be evident throughout, but does not have to be unbalanced. The alcohol strength and hop bitterness often combine to leave a very long finish.

This week, I was feeling extra rich. I garnered some extra money by putting my asthma to work which allowed me to splurge a little on this weeks (and next weeks) brew. As you recall from last week, The Bier Stein is the best place to go when one wants to splurge, so that is where I headed. Man o man was it tough to decide on just one bottle to buy... so I bought two! This weeks review is a Golden American Barleywine matured in Cognac Barrels. Definitely drool worthy, am I right? On to the review!

Aroma: Little to no hop aroma. First whiff is honey with a little fruit, possibly fig and raisin. I detect a little bit of a sweet booziness (obviously).  8.50

Appearance: A lovely clear copper. The creamy white head quickly dissipates, leaving a little lacing.  8.50

Flavor: A little bit of orange at the forefront, possibly from the hops that were used. The Orange gives way to a nice sweet honey and a hint of vanilla. A little bit of burnt sugar/caramel at the back end that trails of with some booziness (obviously).  9

Mouthfeel: Light carbonation with a medium-heavy body. A smooth finish. Surprisingly drinkable for the high ABV.  8.25

Overall: I've had a few brews from Block 15 but none of them have compared to this one. With such a high ABV, I would not expect it to be so balanced. All the flavors go so well together and it goes down really easy. If I had more than one bottle of this, I could easily drink another one. Dangerous stuff.  8.5

Matt's mark: 4.28/5

Today I started a new project. The job tasked to me is making an imperfect bench for the imperfect front porch, which I built a few years ago, in the front of the house. I love to build things even though the projects never go as planned. If there is one thing wood working has taught me it's that I am definitely not a carpenter. But the feeling of accomplishment is not matched by anything else... except maybe pushing my body to its limits and finishing with a high ABV beer. Which is what I did today! What a coincidence! Not the pushing my body to its limits part of course. Apparently, the Beer Advocate crowd has not caught wind of this spectacular brew as there has only been on review... and it was a little low. Really? Not even a 4/5? Psshh. The Untappd crowd though, they know what they are talking about. Myself, let's face it, I had to try extra hard to find faults with this brew so I wouldn't give it a 5... no beer is perfect... except the brews I make... I kid, I kid. Okay, I better stop now 'cause it's getting hard to type as I can't feel my fingers anymore... or my brain. Wait, are you suppose to feel your brain? Whew!

Stickmen Brewing Company Red Kit NW Red Ale

76 IBU 7.0% ABV
Beer Advocate score - n/a
Untappd score 3.67/5

22B. American Strong Ale

A strong, full-flavored American ale that challenges and rewards the palate with full malty and hoppy flavors and substantial bitterness. The flavors are bold but complementary, and are stronger and richer than average strength pale and amber American ales.

For this weeks brew, I hopped over to The Beir Stein Bottle Shop & Pub, an Institution in Eugene, Oregon since opening in July of 2005.  This is the place where I go to stand in awe of all the beers that are available to drool over and every body present understands all the feelings rushing through your body and leaves you alone. If I am feeling extra rich, I will splurge and buy a nice, expensive bottle to bring home. This time, I reached for a middle of the road $7 bottle from a brewery I had never heard of... Stickmen Brewing Company's Red Kit. I just love NW Red Ales. Don't you? On to the scores!


Aroma: Hop forward with a nice grapefruit presence. Slightly sweet on the back end.  7.9

Appearance: Nice dark red, hazy brew with a thick foamy, creamy, persistent head tinted with a little red from the brew itself.  7.8

Flavor: Citrusy hoppiness at the forefront that give way to a slightly sweet biscuit maltiness. The hops drive through to lend a bit of a bitter aftertaste.  8.1

Mouthfeel: Medium bodied and lingers slightly. Not under-carbonated but could have a little more.  7.5

Overall: From a brewery I had never heard of before, this was a solid offering. If this is an indication of what I can expect from their brews, I'm all for it. Red Kit is a nicely balanced, hop forward beer that will keep you coming back for more. The slightly sweet biscuit reminds me of an autumn evening right before the chill sets in. Definitely a must for this time of the year.  7.8

Matt's mark: 3.91/5

This weekend was all about inspiration in the kitchen (as well as Duck football per usual). My lovely wife has been canning and roasting tomatoes all week (I am pretty sure this is why she is sick this weekend). We had so many tomatoes, I decided to spend some time making a yummy dinner... and also do some pickling (not tomatoes 'cause that would be gross, cucumbers from the in-laws garden) which is a first for me. On top of that, I decided to try and capture my own yeast from the pear tree in the backyard (the jury is still out on that one; update next week). I stewed tomatoes with herbs from the garden to make a wonderful sauce for Spanish rice, boiled and then roasted mini golden potatoes and then cooked chicken thighs with herbs and grapefruit... I must admit, I outdid my usual performance in the kitchen. Even my teenage, first year of college, daughter liked it. In between all this, I managed to drink the Red Kit. It's quite unusual to come across a beer that is not scored on beer advocate but I am pretty sure the drinkers from Untappd have no clue what they are talking about. Really? A 3.67? That is waaaaay to low. If you are in the Tualatin, Oregon area (basically Portland), I highly recommend you stop by and grab a brew. If you can't make it, request your local bottle shop to carry it. Delicious!

Traquair House Ale Scotch Ale "Wee Heavy"

-- IBU 7.2% ABV
Beer Advocate  - 4.16/5
Untappd - 3.7/5

BJCP Category - 17C. Wee Heavy

Rich, malty, dextrinous, and usually caramel-sweet, these beers can give an impression that is suggestive of a dessert. Complex secondary malt and alcohol flavors prevent a one-dimensional quality. Strength and maltiness can vary, but should not be cloying or syrupy.

This weekend was all about friends, family and the opening weekend of football. It was a weekend of good talks, hanging with the nieces and nephew in from New York and, of course, watching football with my NY brother. On game-day (Saturday of course), I had the opportunity to take my older brother out to a Oregon Duck game. He hadn't been to a game since 2007, after watching Dennis Dixon going down with a torn ACL (I still say we would have won the title that year). But before the game, you have to eat, right? I decided to take him to a local brewery that I had not been to, Elk Horn Brewery. Boy was it a good decision. The Reuben was great and the Boggy Boon Hazelnut Stout was even better. My brother had the Windigo Chocolate Coconut Stout and it went down easy as well. I was tempted to do a review on an Elk Horn beer but, alas, they don't bottle their beer. Afterwards was a walk through the UofO campus and tailgating at Autzen Stadium. An acquaintance (Shelby and Kyle) from a premium college football recruiting website for the Oregon Ducks called Scoopduck ( I highly recommend), has an open invite to all fellow Scoopduckers. After many vodka jell-o shots, watching the Fuskies lose to Auburn and making new friends, it was time to find our seats and watch the game (which the Ducks won 58-24).

The next day, a buddy from work and his wife were coming down to hang and eat good food. My buddy and I left our significant others to do some artsy stuff (which, come to find out, didn't happen) and headed down to my favorite watering hole, The Coast Fork Brewstation. The Brewstation has a great variety of brews on tap, which always makes for a tough choice. So, we both decided to get a flight to go along with our food. I had a delicious Tuna Salad sandwich which went great with the all the tasty beers. My favorite ended up being the Crux Peach Farmhouse Saison...which I also had a pint of afterwards to wash down the huge sandwich (not pictured).  Before we made the short walk back to my home, I decided to check out the refrigerated case. Lo and behold, I found a delicious looking beer to do my brew review on. Then we were off for many hours of fun conversing and even more food cooked on the grill. I tell you what, I felt like I rolled to bed that night. Too much good eats to say no to. It's a problem that I always have. It's a damn good thing that I run, otherwise I wouldn't just have a beer gut, I would have a spare tire as well. I got to say, this was a nice and full weekend. On to the beer review!

Aroma: Roasted malts, caramel, toffee and a little raisin. A little bit of pleasant smoky peat.  8.25

Appearance: A rich, toffee color with clear appearance. Thin rim of lacing when the white head quickly recedes.  8.75

Flavor: A nice malty sweetness that could last for days. Tastes like burnt sugar/toffee on the forefront with hints of smoky peat and a little woodsy vanilla from the oak on the back end.  9.25  

Mouthfeel: Medium mouth feel, with low to medium carbonation.  8.25

Overall: The overall complexity of this beer is awesome. A nice example of the style. It's heaviness gets you in the mood for autumn, which is great since it is right around the corner.  I have always liked Scotch style Ales and in Scottish fashion, the smoky peat is a nice touch to the style. For the price ($6.99) it's not a bad option for some sipping in the colder days to come.  9

Matt's mark: 4.35/5 

I decided on this beer mainly because the label looked so enticing. At first, I had no idea what kind of beer it was, but the description alone was very intriguing. A handmade Ale Brewed in the ancient Brew House of the Oldest inhabited House of Scotland. What's not to like about that? It goes on to say that it is brewed in a 1738 copper kettle and fermented in oak vessels... I don't know how you could turn that down. So I didn't. And it was a great treat after a day of picking yet more blackberries to be turned into a yummy blackberry port. You have to take the Untappd score with a grain of salt. I mean, only six beer drinkers had rated it (possibly because it's not that easy to find) but Beer Advocate gave it a solid score. Of course, this type of beer is a gateway beer to the darker stuff and therefore I scored it accordingly.

pFriem Belgian-Style Blonde Ale

30 IBU 7.5% ABV
Beer Advocate score 3.89/5
Untappd score 4.03/5

BJCP Category - 125A. Belgian Blonde Ale


A moderate-strength golden ale that has a subtle fruity-spicy Belgian yeast complexity, slightly malty-sweet flavor, and dry finish.
   
Well, Whole Foods had such a good selection of beers, I decided to go back to pick out another beer from there. Actually, I already had my eye on this one from the last time. I have always wanted to try a pFriem beer, I just didn't know where to start, they all look sooooo good. It must be the packaging, I am a sucker for nice packaging. The entire line-up of brews they offer look like small bottles of champagne, making it seem like the contents of each one is really special. I needed to find out if they tasted as good as they look. Read on to find out what I though.

Aroma: Light spice with soft fruit aroma...possibly pear?  8.25

Appearance: Golden and clear. Nice head. Foams quite a bit; pour slowly.  8.5

Flavor: Sweet spiciness on the forefront. Gives away to a slight citrus bitterness. Quite pleasant.  8.5

Mouthfeel: High carbonation. Leaves the mouth dry and clean. A lot like champagne.  8

Overall: I am impressed with pFriem with the brew. The aroma was pleasant and appealing. Appearance wise, it was what a blonde ale is supposed to be. The carbonation is really high and foams a lot. A nice slow pour is required...unless you like really foamy beer. In that case, get a really large glass and go for it. The mouthfeel is a lot like champagne. The carbonation dances on your tongue and the clean dryness leaves you wanting more.  8.3

Matt's mark: 4.16/5

What a busy day I had. Today, I decided that I wanted to trim the hedge along the fence, pick blackberries and clean out the blackberry canes...all that the same time! Well, 6 hours later and 11 pounds of blackberries picked, I finished the job. But my day wasn't done. Nope. Last week, after picking 14 pounds of blackberries out at my in-laws house and adding them to the 9.5 pounds I had in the freezer, I started a blackberry wine. Why do I tell you this? Well, I needed to transition it to a secondary fermenter. This, of course, took another hour or so to sanitize everything and then another hour for the transitioning and cleanup. It's a damn good thing my lovely wife reminded me I needed to eat at some point in the day (which I fit in before the blackberry wine chore), otherwise I wouldn't have made it to my beer at the end. Boy am I glad I did. It was a tasty brew and amazingly, the packaging did make it feel all the more special. I am definitely going to try all the pFriem beers they offer and I will make sure I tell how they taste.

StormBreaker Brewing House Martell NE Style Pale Ale

50 IBU 6.0% ABV
Beer Advocate score 4.2/5
Untappd score 4/5

BJCP Category - 18B. American Pale Ale

A pale, refreshing and hoppy ale, yet with sufficient supporting malt to make the beer balanced and drinkable. The clean hop presence can reflect classic or modern American or New World hop varieties with a wide range of characteristics. An average-strength hop-forward pale American craft beer, generally balanced to be more accessible than modern American IPAs.
     
On my way home for the weekend, I decided to stop by Whole Foods Market, an Amazon grocery store (that sounds weird... and gross), and I picked up this bottle. There were a lot to choose from but when something is named after a House in the GAME OF THRONES, you have to go that route. I also have never had a New England Style beer before, so I thought I would give it a try. Also, it has my favorite hop variety listed as an ingredient, Citra hops! I love using this variety in my homebrews when it is available. So on to the tasting notes!

Aroma: Rich, intense tropical fruit. Hits you as soon as you pop the top. Mostly papaya. I could say something like a little grapefruit, like everybody does, but I would be lying.  8.7

Appearance: Golden and hazy, just what is says the style is supposed to be.  8.5

Flavor: Dense tropical fruit, again mostly papaya. Detect a spicy, resinous note on the backend; heavy dankness, more hops than I expected. The aftertaste lends itself to more citrus.    7

Mouthfeel: Somewhere in the medium bodied spectrum. Definitely a juicy brew. Not quite Refreshing, but getting close.   7

Overall: Never had a NE Style Brew before this so I didn't know what to expect. Heavy intensity of tropical fruits on the nose and the taste. The dankness made it hard for me to consider this a refreshing brew. It kind of got bogged down with citrus. Not a bad beer, just not my favorite. Looking for something a little more refreshing in the summer.   7

Matt's mark: 3.82/5

When bottling a homebrew, one must either drink a previous homebrew or try a new craft brew. I decided to go with a new craft brew. It was a nice brew to keep me occupied when bottling my braggot (ale brewed with copious amounts of honey) but it wasn't my favorite.  I believe this is the first beer I have scored that is below Beer Advocate and Untappd, making me in the minority I guess. This is supposedly a summer brew but I would consider it more of a sipping brew for the long autumn days. A little heavier than I like for summer. Also, after my first sip, I thought it was more of an IPA rather than an APA. That was my interpretation anyway. Yours might not be the same. All in all, I think this brew is worth the try if you come across it. I mean, the score is still fairly solid, so I definitely didn't hate it.

Caldera Brewing Toasted Coconut Chocolate Porter

24 IBU 6.2% ABV
Beer Advocate score 4.02/5
Untappd score 3.96/5

BJCP Category - 20A. American Porter (or possibly a specialty category)

A substantial, malty dark beer with a complex and flavorful dark malt character.
     

I had to travel all the way to Ashland, Oregon for this luscious bottle of beer. A mere 2.5 hour drive for me and the missus on our anniversary trip. Of course, Caldera Brewing was at the top (and only item) on my to do list for the long weekend. Other than, you know, hanging with my better half and having fun. Well, as much fun as you can have in a fumigated downtown Ashland. Forest and brush fires suck. The animals also think so. I couldn't keep track of how many deer we saw on our adventures. If you are ever traveling near the Oregon/California border, Caldera Brewing is right off of I-5. Real easy place to get to. They have phenomenal beer and good eats as well.

Okay, on to the scores:

Aroma: Mouth watering toasted coconut at the forefront with an underlying aroma of dark chocolate... smells like heaven in a bottle.   9.1

Appearance: Coloring of a dark roast coffee with a creamy, marshmallowy head.  8.8

Flavor: A smooth coconut infused chocolate. The flavors are blended together beautifully. Neither flavor is overpowering. Sweet all the way through but definitely not cloying.    9

Mouthfeel: Creamy and full bodied with a good level of carbonation. A nice sippin drink.   9

Overall: Caldera has done a nice job of melding the style of an American Porter with specialty ingredients, lending itself to be very drinkable. Most likely meant to be an after meal dessert. Yummy.   9

Matt's mark: 4.49/5

So, here is a disclaimer for these scores. I like dark beers. A lot. I also like dark chocolate. A lot. This means if you put the two together, I am in beer heaven. I would have been fine if Caldera had stopped there. But then the toasted coconut?!? Did I tell you that I like coconut? A lot. Hence the high marks. Which, I must add, is considerably higher than the already high marks given by Beer Advocate and Untappd. I know coconut is not for everyone. If you are in that category, what is wrong with you? Just kidding...mostly. Okay back to the coconut. If you don't like it, I don't recommend this beer...no matter how much you like chocolate. But for me, this brew was a wonderful way to end a wonderful time spent with my wife. I wish every weekend could be like this one...without the smoke.

Bridgeport Brewing Mosaic Hopped Cream Ale

18 IBU 4.8% ABV
Beer Advocate score 3.61/5
Untappd score 3.52/5

BJCP Category - 1C. Cream Ale

A clean, well-attenuated, flavorful American “lawnmower” beer. Easily drinkable and refreshing, with more character than typical American lagers.
       
I picked up this beautiful bottle of beer at my local Fred Meyer (under the Kroger Company umbrella). You wouldn't think it but the selection was actually pretty good. I guess it has to be in the PNW where you can buy a craft beer on every street corner
. I have had a few brewski's from Bridgeport, and they are always solid, so I decided to give this a try. I am going to be a little honest, I decided on this particular beer because of the color for the label. The light bluish-green label was just calling out, saying "pick me, pick me". Here are my tasting notes with my own personal scores:

Aroma: Slightly fruity, smells a little like crisp apple. Maybe a little citrus as well. Low level of a hop profile. Nicely done.   8.2

Appearance: A nice blonde straw color with a white foamy head. Slightly hazy.  7

Flavor: Clean, crisp flavor.  Sweet at the forefront and smooth sailing to a crisp, low-fruity flavor profile. I didn't detect any bitterness, which would have helped to tone the sweetness a tad. A nice, dry finish.   8.2

Mouthfeel: Crisp, clean with medium carbonation. Thirst quenching.   7

Overall: Bridgeport did a decent job on this one. Loved the light apple smell. The color was nice but a little hazy. The feel and flavor exhibited what a cream ale is supposed to; slightly sweet with a low fruity profile while being crisp and thirst quenching. The carbonation could have been higher to stay a little truer to the style.   7.8

Matt's mark: 3.82/5

While I found this beer to be quite refreshing after a 9 mile run (I did this willingly with nobody chasing me), the exertion may have skewed the numbers a little. I mean, after a 9 miler, Coors Light would be refreshing. Wait, no it wouldn't... it would still taste like a flavorless glass of nothing. That doesn't mean I am going to score the brew again. I will trust my tasters and go with it. Both Beer Advocate and Untapped were quite a bit lower than my score... maybe people scoring the beers were drinking on a full stomach instead of being desiccated at the end of a long run? No one will know for sure. I will definitely drink this one again. The low alcohol level lends it to being a decent choice for long summer party... or not being light headed after a 9 mile run.