BEER - Opaaafest

I had a few spare dollars so I snagged a pair of Opaaafest Oktoberfest Lagers from Opa Opa Brewing Company last night, and had them both tonight.

As far as the style goes, it was average. Average as in: basic, nothing unique, not bad but not good enough to seek out. It was a pleasant experience, but that's about it. Which is unfortunate, because I love their IPA and a few other beers of theirs, which I used to get on tap out in western MA when I'd go to live shows at the Iron Horse and other local music venues. Oh well...

So: I do not recommend this particular beer. I will say that I do enjoy the festive artwork. And huge points for it being a label.

BEER - Great Fruit IPA

My brother in law (my sister's husband) took me and his son to Wachusett Brewery (which is a hop, a skip and a jump from the lake, where we were all hanging out), for lunch today. I had the pretty decent buttermilk chicken sandwich and some amazing french fries to eat, and alongside them I had a Great Fruit IPA. It was good, with a nice scent and a decent flavor, but it was rather unremarkable (which isn't necessarily bad, it's not). I'd drink it again for sure, but it's not really a 'gotta have it' offering, like their Nut Brown Ale has always been since the late 90's.

 

 

 

Tour Season

I do my best to keep the local music live performance dates current. 

Sadly, I haven't had the disposable income to travel and see as many shows as I'd like, which is especially disheartening now that several of my favorite national acts are touring in the fall and winter of this year.

Shows I'd like to attend this year:

• Pete Yorn is playing in MA, VT and NH in early September, the 10th - 12th.
• IVY will be in Boston on 11/14.

It's hard to believe that with all of the shows I've been to over the decades, the last few I've attended were back in 2018 (Paperwhite and Echosmith), and before that, 2015 (MuteMath). Ah, life. Hopefully I'll get to at least one of the above shows, plus several of our local favorites.

BEER - Thrill Seeker DIPA

Last night I had a pair of pints of yet another beer from Little Willow Brewing Company. What can I say? It's a very cold chapter of winter, and I'd rather not come home with a roulette-losing random pick, so I am going with a reliable source (haha).

Thrill Seeker DIPA is another double dry hopped New England style IPA. It is heavily hopped with Galaxy, Nelson Sauvin, and Citra cryo hops, and the cans are full of seeds (the likes for which I am always grateful). Plus that piney scent that I love. Extremely hazy in the best way, both cans went down incredibly smooth from out of the glass, though in this case, the 8% ABV slapped me in the face rather quickly. Totally worth it for two pints of amazing flavor (peaches and tropical fruits mostly). Next time I'll get a few more than just this pair from the singles case, and also have a decent meal beforehand. Highly recommended.

BEER - Snow Sculpture IPA

Last night I tried another beer from Little Willow Brewing Company out of Florence, MA, their double dry hopped Snow Sculpture IPA. 

With its Vera and Citra hops, this beer paired ridiculously well with the Black Forest ham and lacy Swiss cheese I was eating alongside the pints. And at 7.1% ABV it didn't pound me over the head with the alcohol content. There are so many great beers from this microbrewery that I highly recommend a visit if you're ever in that part of western Massachusetts. It's on my list for this summer!

I drank all four of the 16 oz can pack, and toward the end I decided to open and sample some dried squid (a favorite bar snack in South Korea) in three different flavors. The plain version was quite delicious, just the right degree of salty. The smoked variety was my favorite, such a great flavor to go along with the chewy texture. And the hot style was fantastic, so flavorful that it made my nose actually run, but in the best way possible (haha). If you're ever presented with dried squid, give it a try, especially if you already enjoy jerky or dried seafood of other types.

BEER - Marble Run DIPA

 

 

I had a few pints of this beer last night, Marble Run DIPA, a double dry hopped double New England IPA, from my recent favorite brewery.  

Little Willow Brewing Company out of Florence in western MA has a wide variety of amazing beers. The hops it uses include Alora, Mosaic Cryo, and Citra, and the blend is incredibly satisfying.

All I can say is: wow, what a fantastic beer! So opaque you could walk on it, with so many seeds per can you could plant an entire citrus grove. 😂 The scent is bright & the mouthfeel is like velvet. I am usually impressed with Little Willow beers and this one is top notch. I'd absolutely hunt this one down again.

BEER - Lost Moonbot

 

First beer of the year, a four-pack of which carried me through last night's calendar turn into the sunrise, as I hung out online playing "Elvenar" and "DigDig", and goofing around with Ai modifications of my own drawings.

Lost Moonbot East Coast IPA by Moon Hill Brewing in Gardner, MA. As I posted on my Untappd account: "I can definitely taste the hint of black tea. The citrus is very understated. And it has just the right kind of bitter at the end of each swig...". It's a nice beer, but not one I'd search high and low for. I'd definitely try it from the tap if I am ever at the home location though.

Happy New Year 

Not Lame Minus!

BEER - Rock Pile IPA

Over the course of last night, as the half a foot of snow from Winter Storm Chan fell down upon New England, I had a 4-pack of Rock Pile IPA from Tuckerman Brewing Company, located in Conway, NH. The beer came out of each of the 16 oz cans very foamy, producing an overly large head, which was disappointing (and wasteful). I still had high hopes, however, because the beer features my two favorite hops, Citra and Simcoe. Can't miss, right? Wrong...

The beer's flavor was so ordinary that it was more of a background experience to my evening rather than a highlight. It didn't taste bad in any way, but it was just SO unremarkable. I enjoyed the haze that the 6.5% produced, but that is it's only selling point from this particular occasion. It's yet another beer that could taste better from the tap, but I am in no rush to drive up to Conway any time soon...

Grade: C+

 

New Music - Chris Côté

Hey look, old pal Chris Cote (formerly the amazing Almanac Mountain) has released a new 2-song chunk of music! 

Check it out at the link HERE.

 

Beers of Autumn

Wow, it's been quite awhile since I have done anything here other than update the "Upcoming Shows" section (which I just did). So here are a few beer reviews from the last 30 days or so...

I tried to move away from my onslaught of IPAs once September hit, and I have had a few decent and so-so Octoberfests, and pumpkin ales & lagers. Here are a few images and quick comments on each:

 

 

🎃 - Poker Face Pumpkin Ale from OPA OPA Brewing Company. It smells great, but the head out of the can was overwhelming, and the beer itself, while decently flavored, was a bit watery.

 

 

 

Amherst Brewing Company's Pumpkin Ale is fantastic! The scent was amazing, the flavor light and seasonal (not overpowering at all), and it was quite refreshing (a word I don't use often). Very highly recommended.

 

 

Copper Legend from Jack's Abby is an Octoberfest lager, and it's really good stuff. Very light, yet flavorful. I enjoyed it so much that 1) I split the four-pack of 16 oz. cans over two nights, and 2) they have a lemony/citrusy summer lager called Porch Fest that sounds interesting, which I'll keep an eye out for next year...

 

BEER - Drayman's Porter

Drayman's Porter from Berkshire Brewing Company is a very good option if you aren't in the mood to get punched in the face by a row of traditional Guinness pints. It's less heavy, less bitter, and goes down incredibly smoothly. A nice smokiness and the pleasant finish validated my choice. It won't replace the actual Guinness experience, but it's a damned fine alternative. 

Happy St. Patrick's Day!

BEER - Free Rise Mosaic

Last night I had my first ever saison style beer, a Free Rise Mosaic from the eastern Massachusetts Trillium Brewing Company. I'm glad my brother in law had it in his fridge.

It's a bit more carbonated than my prefered IPAs, and definitely less hoppy, but it was very good. The piney scent from the Mosaic hops is always welcome, and even though the beer is a hefty 7.3% ABV, it didn't throw me for a loop. I liked how dry it was, and also the fruity undertones. We were eating steak at my sister's house, and it paired very well.

Trillium has locations in Canton and Fort Point, plus a couple of seasonal pop-up beer gardens in Boston, on the Greenway and also on Park Drive. I might have to pay them a visit this summer and see what other beers they offer.

BEER - Slippery When Wet

I had my final beer of the year tonight as I listened to music and played an online game called "Konkro.io". 

The beer is called Slippery When Wet IPA from Tripping Animals Brewery out of Doral, Florida. It features two hops with which I am unfamiliar, Lotus and Trident. It poured nicely from the can with little head, and it had a faint unplaceable scent. The flavor was decent, but it wasn't remarkable in any way. Basically the beer wasn't bad or good, just serviceable. If it hadn't been for the can's artwork, it might have been a total bust, but if nothing else, I now know which kinds of hops to be wary of.

BEER - Congress Street

I had dinner at my sister's house Friday night (as I do more often than not, hanging out with her and her husband, and whichever nieces are home), and the brewery of the night was Trillium Brewing, who have locations all around Boston, including near Fenway Park.

I had the Congress Street IPA. It was fantastically piney when I opened it, and it poured with a very small head. The citrus understones and a hint of melon made for a great flavor profile, and it went very well with the steaks we had for dinner. I've always been a fan of Galaxy hops (right behind Mosaic and Citra in my book), and it didn't disappoint. A very good beer.

Soju Notes

I've meant to update this for a few weeks, but now I am finally getting around to more reporting on all things soju (the South Korean drink that is roughly akin to Japanese sake, but not quite the same).

I began my adventures into soju with Soon Hari's Apple Mango back in early May (read here). It was fantastic stuff, and I imagined that other flavors would be similarly great. How wrong was I?

So a couple of days later I tried two other flavors from Soon Hari. The Apple Soju had a sugar-substitute tang that overpowered the flavor, and ultimately ruined the experience. And the Citrus Soju was fine, but not great. Throw in another Apple Mango at the end, and I learned the hard way that I cannot handle 3 bottles of soju. To be fair I had 3 beers afterward, but either way, A) the other flavors were not good, and B) the next day was not pleasant (haha).

My next experience with soju was on August 2nd, when I brought a couple of bottles of Soon Hari's Yogurt Soju to my sister's house (I was cooking her and my bro-in-law dinner). I also brought a bottle of Banzai Bunny's Super Fresh flavor to compare and contrast. The Yogurt flavor was okay, but it didn't pair well with the boneless pork (soy sauce marinade), ramen, tomatoes & pea pods. Perhaps on its own it would be more enjoyable, but we all switched it out for beer (me) and wine (them) after a couple of shots. And as for the Banzai Bunny, I'd actually tried it the night before, but it turned out to be pure 16% alcohol, with no discernable flavor. It had a mildly pleasing aftertaste, but it's not for me.

In summary: except for the Apple Mango from Soon Hari, I really do not care for soju. It was fun diving into a new thing, but I think it's safe to say that the soju experiment is over, unless I ever travel to South Korea, and taste it from the source...

Sake

I've never had sake (a Japanese alcohol made from rice), but because it has been so prevalent in many of the Japanese shows I've been watching on Netflix this calendar year, I decided to try some. Back at the beginning of the month I'd bought a 200 ml (roughly 6.75 oz) Chika Sake Cup from Hakutsuru, and tonight I finally opened it up.

I have to say, so far I am not a fan. To be sure, it's not a top shelf brand, but it smells very boozy, tastes very boozy, and I can feel the slightest sip slide down my throat and thorax like fire. The only plus was a pleasant aftertaste, which I can't quite place (a mild honey perhaps). I won't give up on the type of drink as a whole, but this particular brand, despite the cute and reusable glass container, isn't for me. I do like the cup though, with its three cute images.

Glassware

After the taste-tests of various flavors of soju, out of a small repurposed three-dollar spice bottle, I decided to upgrade my experience by buying a 4-pack of actual traditional soju glasses (brand name Jinro). They came wrapped in fantastic block print paper, and the image printed on them is very cool. Going forward I'll be able to respect the custom, with the flavors I truly enjoy.

Soju - SoonHari Apple Mango

So tonight I had my first bottle of soju, a type of alcohol from South Korea distilled from tapioca and rice. I decided on the apple mango flavor from SoonHari, and it was the perfect choice. I don't keep shot glasses in my house because I only drink beer at home, so I used a small glass spice jar I snagged for $3 at Target. The Apple Mango compared to the Peach Tree schnapps I drank far too often back in college, but a lighter, smoother version. The five shots of 12% alcohol went down nicely, with no bitterness or boozy aftertaste. I enjoyed it very much, and despite downing the entire 375 ml (12.68 oz) in under an hour, I was only a bit buzzed. Such a great experience! I can't wait to try some other flavors...

BEER - Pacific Coast Time

I was drawing and playing online games this evening, and I decided to have a couple of beers. I had picked up a 4-pack of cans a few days ago, of Pacific Coast Time, a West Coast DIPA. 

Hailing from the Mighty Squirrel Brewing Company out of Waltham, MA, this double IPA is wonderfully pine-y, with subtle grapefruit undertones. And it has just the right bitterness. It pours very clear from the can, with very little head. None of that silly foam to take up space in a glass! And check out the artwork (often the reason I opt for one beer over another of similar profile) - a wave of hops. Very cool. And lastly, the beer definitely lives up to its name. It reminds me of many of the beers I've had with my brother over in Northern California. Highly recommended.

And for all of us Red Sox fans, they have a second location next to Fenway Park. Check it out!

BEER - Lake Life Pale Ale

I was at my sister's house for dinner last night with her and her husband, and on the way I snagged a 4-pack of cans of Lake Life Pale Ale from Hobbs Brewing Company out of Ossipee, NH (they also have a tavern in West Ossipee). It is a fantastic mix of Citra and Simcoe hops. We had it with grilled beef filets and garden salad, and it was a great match for the meal. At 5.9% it doesn't slam into you, but it does sneak up a bit.

 

I've had other beers from Hobbs, including the Jacked Up DIPA and the Hi, Jack! NEIPA, both great ones, so it was nice to find yet another good brew from this particular place. Recommended.