from the other side

Of the ocean, I mean.  Although I had a few Brooklyn Brown Ales in July, the Brooklyn Lager did not present itself.  I was interested to see it described as "Pre-Prohibition" since I'd recently seen a beer try to connect with that era.

Once again, my refrigerator produced an eruption on opening.  Maybe the motor is making it vibrate too much these days.  Once settled, the lager has a perfect beer color.  There isn't much smell to it and even after sitting a bit it has a good head on top.  The taste is sweet, more so than many lighter beers, but the malt as a top ingredient should make that come as no surprise.  It's tasty from the start and the sweetness didn't get too heavy over time.  If it's authentically pre-Prohibition, it's something I'll have to look for when I get that time machine working.

Oh, er, what?

Seems legit, is legit

Hostina myšky

Byla jednou myška, která bydlela v domu jedoho rolníka.  Rolník byl chudý, a tak neměl moc jídla.  Myška měla vždycky hlad.

Jedno léto, myška šla na dovolenou do města a našla otvor ve velkém hotelu.  Hotel měl velkou, slavnou restauraci, kde kuchař vařil každy den velmi lahodný jídlo.  Myška byla v nebi.

     Jidla čokoladový dort a hlodala Cheddar sýr.
   
     Ochutnala čerstvá brokolice a vychutnávala rýžový nákup.
   
     Píla mléko a srkala víno.

Jednu noc, posledná noc dovolené, měla hostinu.

     Nejdřív píla pivo, které pila poprvé v životě, a chroupala arašidy.

     Potom si pochutnala na salát, se špenátnem, rajčaty, okurkou a sýrem feta.

     Potom chlemtala krůti omáčku a žvýkala hranolky s kečupem.

     Pak si nacpala pusu chlebem s máslem a zhltnula hrách.

     Pak promarnila na vanilkovou zmrzlinou a hltala tři jahody.

     Nakonec to zakončila panákem rumu.

Myška byla plná a moc št'astná, tak št'astná, že si nevšimla, že přišla nová kočka hotelu v restauraci.  Kočka viděla myšku a smála se.  Ten smích bzl štěsti pro myšku.  Mohla běžet do otvoru a bězpečě uniknout.

Nikdy neměla jinou dovolenou v hotelu ale měla hodně vzpomínek na hostinu.

our lady of brewing

There is a brewery near Madrid called La Virgen.  I've encountered their products before, mostly in the form of ales, but now I found a black beer on the shelf.

It is definitely black; it's one of those beers that some liken to oil.  The smell is interesting, with just a little portery earthiness mixed with a sweetness I associate with Belgian dark beer.

It doesn't keep much head, although the beer itself is bubbly.  The flavor is not so sweet at first, although that does come out once the beer has been sitting for a few minutes.  It has a mellow taste, which at first I thought would go well with mild food, no chips or pretzels.  As the sweetness came out, though, it seemed more like a beer to enjoy by itself.  If you're low on snacks that might work for you.  The liquid itself is completely opaque, not just dark colored like some beers, and seems to have a thicker consistency at the bottom of the glass.  I'm not sure if it's unfiltered or not, but there wasn't a change in flavor and the texture was not at all unpleasant.  A good beer to keep around with those ales.

Mmm, taste the love...umm...

a peek at summer

I'd tried the Früh Kölsch at some tasting before, so I had an idea of what was coming.  It's always good to remind yourself though, for the sake of certainty.

The beer comes out extremely bubbly but calms quickly.  It has very light goldish color, just like I remember and much like other kölsches.  First there's a slightly bitter, acid taste.  Then the bubbles calm down and the taste becomes very light and delicate.  It's like a champagne among beers.

An idea for next New Year's

irish red

Going down the color scale, I chose a red ale.  Irish, probably typically.  The label has that nice Celtic lettering on it, the kind you associate with pubs.

It comes out bubbly although the foam dies down quickly.  There's a nice sweetish smell, which isn't quite what I expect with an ale.  It actually has a much earthier taste than one would think based on the smell, but warmed up it has a little bacon flavor.  Good to have salty snacks to start with - pretzels and such - but something sweeter when the bacon kicks in.