Stevens Point Amber Lager and Founders Centennial IPA

Right, a little bit different this time. Decided to waffle on about two different beers in one post: Stevens Point Brewery's Amber Lager and Founders' Centennial IPA. I'll set the scene...

It's a Saturday afternoon and once again we find ourselves at Ship In A Bottle, browsing shelf-upon-shelf of ales, aiming to find something new and exciting to drown out the tedium of Strictly. It is at this moment I realise that I judge beers far too quickly, simply based on the design on their label. Time for a change. I settle on a small collection of three or four different brews from Michigan's Founders Brewery, spend a short time reading the descriptions (and ABV) of each, pluck the Centennial IPA from it's place on the shelf and plonk it onto the counter.

With one choice made my eyes again began to wander. In a break from tradition, I perused the bottom shelf, sifting through a range of bottles, unappealing in both style of beer and description. It is then that I realise that half of this shelf is occupied by the wares of one brewery in particular: Stevens Point. A brewery based across the water in Wisconsin. The helpful shopkeeper was keen to recommend the brewery, in particular their Amber Lager. Although initially sceptical (I'm not a huge lager fan), Stevens Point are the cheapest range in stock. I go with his recommendation and head home.

Hours have passed and it's now time to crack open the first of my two new brews. As I'm feeling a little more excited by the prospect of supping the Centennial IPA, I opt to start with the Amber Lager.

Now, I know I mentioned that lager isn't my favourite style of beer, but I can appreciate when something has been brewed with a certain amount of passion. Seemingly, this hasn't.

As I poured the lager it was immediately apparent that my palate was not in for a treat. With no distinctive smell and a head that vanished within seconds, what I found was a drab, boring, and somewhat pathetic beer. As I sipped at the Stevens Point brew whilst cooking, my mind kept flitting back to nights out in Southport during my time at college, drinking awful beer and trying to fool my body into enjoying it. It really is questionable as to how a brewery can allow such a sub-standard product to bear their name. Something has gone wrong here. With not much in the way of taste (think can of Carlsberg on K1) I slowly reached the end of the glass. Job done. Finally. Let's move on.

Feeling like I'd done my bit, I opened the second bottle with a sense of enthusiasm mixed with apprehension. Surely this will actually taste of something?

From the very second I cracked open Founders' Centennial IPA my fears were allayed. The aroma of hops and citrus filled my nostrils. This IPA wasn't messing about. The head retention was decent and a nice amount of foam lacing was left around the rim of the glass as the head dissipated.

From the first sip I was blown away by the Centennial IPA. Masses of citrus and hops balanced with an almost pine-like after taste were the main points here. This is a bold IPA which exudes every bit of it's ABV of 7.2%. You can tell the folk at Founders have taken a long time in perfecting this recipe. It simply tastes like a high quality IPA; a perfect mix between a session ale and something to drink slowly and savour. It reminded me of Brew Dog's 'IPA Is Dead' series, particularly the Waimea, which I was fortunate enough to enjoy from the tap at Leeds' Brew Dog bar.

Overall, it's safe to say I loved Founders' Centennial IPA. Is this because I'm already a big fan of American IPA's? Probably. Perhaps I enjoyed it that little bit more as it had been preceded by Stevens Point's Amber Lager? Who knows. One thing I am sure of is that I will be picking up another bottle soon, as well as trying another of Founders' creations. Recommended.

Post Road Pumpkin Ale

I’ve noticed that recently my world has taken on a slightly rustic, blurred hue. This could mean only one of two things; and luckily, as I remain endowed with youthful exuberance, I can stop panicking about my cataracts. No, no - it’s autumn and it’s pissing down.

A key contributor to the seasonal complexion is the humble pumpkin, however it’s latent potential is often unfulfilled at this time of year. It’s eventual fate tends to be decided at the hands of children with an insatiable thirst to hack away at vegetables while their parents look on in sheer terror for the welfare of the appendages of their offspring. This lack of pumpkin appreciation possibly stems from the fact that they’re incredibly difficult to grow in the UK, as they need 3 months of warm weather to thrive. Hopeless. Predictably then, the first time I ate pumpkin was via a pumpkin pie at family thanksgiving dinner in the heart of New England. Since my initial bite, my affinity for the gourd life was confirmed.

Obviously then, I was drawn to Brooklyn Brewery’s Post Road Pumpkin Ale on my recent visit to Liverpool’s Ship In A Bottle. Unlike a lot of autumnal pretenders (see Starbucks Spiced Pumpkin Latte), Post Road does actually contain REAL pumpkin. Well, almost. Of course everybody is aware of the debate that continues to RAGE about whether Dickinson’s pumpkins are actually pumpkins or squashes but for the sake of the point I’m trying to make I’ll side with the former.

The pour itself resulted in an inch high white crest that dissipated fairly quickly. This was not a letdown though as I was so bewitched by the beautiful copper liquid before me that I barely noticed the head. With only minimal visible carbonation, I was able to savour the reddish shade, before moving on to take in the aromas of cinnamon, cloves, nutmeg, and of course, pumpkin.

I was pleasantly surprised by the balance of freshness and bitterness on the initial sip, and reassured by the spice and toasted malt notes on the back end that immediately set about warming my cockles. I’ve read reviews in which people (from Illinois to New York) complain about the lack of pumpkin taste but I certainly can’t echo these gripes. Then again, I’m not from the biggest pumpkin producing states in North America; I’m from Liverpool and usually have to get my pumpkin fix from the 2 for £3 bin at Tesco.

Despite Post Road's ABV clocking in at 5.0%, I was tricked/treated into thinking I had drank a lot more than I had due to the rosy flush permeating from my cheeks, and the cauldron of warmth in my belly; a feeling I'd normally associate with cradling a hot toddy under a tartan blanket fortress. Post Road is an absolute treat and will serve as an incredibly effective soothing agent when our windows are being pelted by squads of toerags next week. Happy Halloween!

Augustiner Bräu Oktoberfestbier

So, first of a (hopefully) regular series of posts all about beer. Nothing too formal, just some thoughts and opinions on a wide range of brews, ranging from pale ales through to imperial stouts and anything else in between.

I picked up this bottle of Oktoberfestbier last weekend from Liverpool's Ship In A Bottle for a couple of reasons, first of which being I hadn't drank anything remotely resembling an Oktoberfestbier since this time last year at Leeds' brilliant North Bar. Secondly, this is a traditional Oktoberfestbier and not just an Oktoberfest-style beer. A beer can only be labelled an Oktoberfestbier if it was brewed within the city of Munich, home of the Oktoberfest celebrations, everything else is seen to be a mimic of the traditional style.

Admittedly, there were a few different Oktoberfestbiers to choose from at Ship In A Bottle. However, my hand immediately found itself picking up the Augustiner as my mind wandered back to my most recent visit to Munich three years ago. It was during this time that I had discovered the delight that is Augustiner Edelstoff (or 'noble stuff' in English) and my choice was made.

After leaving the bottle to chill for a couple of hours I decided it was time to see if I had made a good choice. Upon pouring the beer I was surprised by how light in colour it was, a huge white head developing as I tried my utmost to pour steadily. A vast amount of carbonation bubbles began to rise to the top of the glass until it slowly began to settle along with the dissipation of the rather large head, leaving a lacing of foam around the rim of the glass.

Upon first taste I was immediately impressed by how fresh and clean the beer tasted and smelled; relatively sweet with only a slight bitterness from the hops. The after taste left me wanting a little more bitterness just to round it off. This is definitely a session beer, perfect for occasions such as Oktoberfest. I couldn't really taste the alcohol, which in some cases is a negative. However, it fits perfectly with this style of the beer.

Overall I can see how this beer serves its purpose perfectly well; this is a beer to be drunk time and again throughout the day. However, if you're after something slightly more adventurous then I'm sure there are plenty of other Oktoberfestbiers that will provide a little more excitement. As far as my choice goes, I'm relatively happy with the Augustiner. I finished the bottle easily and found it very drinkable, if not a little underwhelming. Next time I visit Ship In A Bottle I will be picking a different Oktoberfestbier (assuming there are any left), if only for comparisons sake.

Still, if you haven't already tried it, give Augustiner Edelstoff a go: a great substitute for standard canned lager.