In München steht ein Hofbräuhaus: Eins, zwei, g'suffa!Da läuft so manches Fäßchen aus:Eins, zwei, g'suffa!Da hat so mancher brave Mann:Eins, zwei, g'suffa!Gezeigt was er so vertragen kannSchon früh am Morgen fing er anUnd spät am Abend kam er herausSo schön ist's im Hofbräuhaus.
The sun's out and shining. A lone cricket's playing somewhere in the shade of the trees by my house. Sure, today's in the 70s but there's still a certain autumnal quality on the breeze. It's a damn fine day for another Oktoberfest-style lager.
Who am I to turn down such a fantastic experience? I have just the beer stashed in the fridge for a day like this: North High's Oktoberfest. Let's see how its drinking.
The sun's out and shining in a bright blue sky. Sure, the temperature's high, but there's a subtle chill in the light breeze. I just got back from a short run and am nearly ready to settle in for the new Rings of Power episode but, before I do, I want to take some time and celebrate the cooling weather with another Oktoberfest.
Up today is Country Boy Brewing's aptly-named Oktoberfest. I've had one of their beers before (Cougar Bait, back in 2017) and was duly impressed. Let's see how their Oktoberfest drinks.
This season, I'd planned for two respites from the heavy, stout-laden maple offerings I'd be drinking. The first was a maple cider. The second is this afternoon's beer: A smoked lager featuring maple syrup. I figured that ought to be light enough, right?
I'm actually excited for today's beer, mainly because I've never before encountered a lager that features maple syrup as an adjunct. But, somehow, Oxbow figured out the trick to pulling it off. I bought this can back in February or March of this year (the canning date stamped on the bottom is January). I'm following the instructions printed on the label: It's been kept cold in my fridge since I brought it home and I'm enjoying it within a year of it's production.
Now, without further preamble (excepting the bit immediately below where I talk a little about Oxbow), here's Sap Haus.
Before you dig into this post, rest assured that I'm still actively hunting for cicada beers to bolster my (hopefully) burgeoning cicada-themed brews series. Since I'm having trouble tracking down more than what I've already written about, I'm shifting gears slightly to another loose series that'll run the course of the summer. This is one that'll focus on lo-cal craft beer.
The first beer I'm writing about in this set is the first lo-cal craft beer I ever tried: Dogfish Head's Slightly Mighty. I'd spent a while looking for it on store shelves and, coincidentally, managed to nab a sixer back in 2019, on the exact same day that Dogfish joined The Boston Beer Company (a.k.a. Sam Adams). I was one of many people floored when that merger went through, but I'm happy that Dogfish beer hasn't dropped in quality.
Because it's so hot and because of the virus, we won't be seeking out fireworks tonight. I'll do some yard work later on and maybe some dishes. Michelle's working on her taxes. We're just doing an incredibly subdued Independence Day 2020. But, it's not without beer. Case in point: This can of Warped Wing's Trotty Lime beside my laptop.
Oh, yeah. That COVID-19 thing's still going around. This is still my tales from the cellar series. Yesterday, when I decided that I'd do a post today, Michelle was too busy working to throw a bottle into the fridge for me, so I did it myself. I reached into the cabinet--without looking--and grabbed a bottle. It wasn't until I opened the fridge today that I let myself see what it was: Madtree's 2017 vintage Levanto Oscuro, part of their Funk Series.
I think they enjoyed their time here. Even if they didn't, I sure enjoyed the time I spent with them. The icing on the cake was that they brought along a few bottles for me to sample. Today, I'm breaking into one of them; the other'll be featured closer to Halloween (because it's a pumpkin brew). Oh, did I mention that they live in Portland, Oregon? Because that's where they live. This is a Portland brew you can't get around these parts, which makes me all the more excited to try it. So, here we go. Breakside's Salted Caramel Stout.
Whatever it is, I've been battling it since last Tuesday (this was originally planned to be a Friday night post, but we just blew right on by that, huh?). I'm still not super well, but I'd like to think I'm on the mend. That means that while I'm still coughy, sneezy, and groggy, I can taste and smell just fine.
Considering that, I think it's finally time for me to break into the next Christmas beer I've had slated to talk about. With illness no longer holding me back, here it is: Tröegs' Mad Elf.
Before jumping into the bottle, I'll note a few things:
- This is last year's Punkuccino. See, a local bottleshop had a plenty left over from last year and, in the early spring, they marked their remaining stock down to two bucks a bomber.
- This isn't the only Elysian pumpkin beer I'm discussing this year; the other'll be Night Owl.
- Elysian is, of course, a shill for AB InBev. I drink AB InBev beers, but I also recognize just how awful the company is. They're the worst.
- I've had this beer before. Many times, in fact (I bought more than a few $2 bombers). While it's not the worst pumpkin beer I've had (that honor goes to Saranac's Pumpkin Ale) nor is it the worst Elysian pumpkin beer I've had (that'd be Dark Knife, also marked down to $2/bomber earlier this year), I can't say I particularly enjoy it. In this post, I'll tell you why that is.
In February, I went to visit one of my groomsmen in Austin, TX. On my first night there, he took me to a slew of local breweries. One of our stops was at Fairweather Cider Co., and the flight I got contained a taster of one Tejano Dreams (complete with phenomenal chile flavor)--I was astounded by it on tap and knew immediately that we'd have to swing by the joint again before I left so I could grab some cans of the stuff to bring back with me for a proper blogpost.
That time--after, what, three and a half months?--has finally come. So, here we go.
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