Tag Archives: caramel malt

Limited Edition Shock Top Twisted Pretzel Wheat by Anheuser-Busch

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1506621_10102420679979880_8309647112701965031_nRating: 3.6/5

Limited Edition Shock Top Twisted Pretzel Wheat by Anheuser-Busch is a 5.2% ABV Belgian-Style Wheat Ale brewed with spices and Caramel Malt and With Artificial Flavor added.

COMMERCIAL DESCRIPTION
Just in time for National Pretzel Day on April 26, Shock Top has united the classic taste of a crisp, cold beer and warm, bakery-fresh pretzels in its newest brew, Shock Top Twisted Pretzel Wheat. The brewer today announced the limited-edition beer, a Belgian-style unfiltered wheat ale that delivers the delicious taste and aroma of fresh pretzels, will be served up at beer festivals nationwide—and available on draught at select locations.

==Introduction==

I was able to get this beer when I went to visit my friend at a party. I would have liked to get this if they had it on a 6 pack but for now they only sell this in 12 pack. While many may see these beers as the “crafty” kind, I personally think that if it tastes good then it should be a good beer. I have tried several Shock Top varieties and the majority of them are average at best but every now and again there are some gold ones. There are some that are just plain no good which I have stated before. So regardless of where the beer comes from, if I like it, I will review it. Cheers!

Aromas:
Salted Buttery Pretzel, Caramel popcorn, sourdough bread, biscuit bread, cereal grain, hints of apple, brown sugar and maple hints.

Flavors:
Caramel, Vanilla, salted pretzel notes, buttery caramel popcorn, sourdough bread, cola hints, biscuit bread, apples, cinnamon toast cereal hints, maple hints, banana notes, hazelnut hints and clove spice hints.

Aftertaste:
Cinnamon Cereal grains, pretzel hints, buttery caramel and hazelnut hints. No alcohol in the taste, light mouth feel, easy to drink and medium brown body.

Overall:
A Pretty decent beer. They nailed some aspects of the pretzels as well as other flavors relating to the pretzels such as the caramel. Shock Tops is not my favorite type of beer, but so far this one, the Shocklate and the Applecrisps are my favorite. This one is worth a try but not worth having to buy a whole 12 pack just to get it. Unless you have a party, then maybe it will work.

Anime Corner:
Embodiment of Pretzel and beer original art work was the obvious reason I chose the pairing. Nothing too complex as the colors and the representation of the pretzel and the beer are there to compliment the beer flavors, the label and so forth.

Sources:
http://fc00.deviantart.net/fs71/i/2013/349/b/d/pretzel_and_beer_by_classicnightmare-d6y0py9.jpg

Galactic Imperial Red by Hopworks Urban Brewery

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999026_10101279478851090_1033965570_nRating: 3.8/5

Galactic Imperial Red by Hopworks Urban Brewery is a 9.5%ABV Imperial Amber/Red Ale coming in at 100+ IBU

Label: 
Hopworks Galactic Imperial Red; One small sip for man, one giant bottle for mankind. Robust caramel malt flavors battle NW Centennial, Cascade, Magnum and Nugget hops for interstellar supremacy. Throw down your quarters before it’s game over.
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Galaga fans will remember the similarities of this bottle’s beer label. This beer is an organic made beer using organic ingredients. 

Aromas of this beer are of piney and grassy hops, citrus, rich caramel, toffee and biscuits.

Flavors are of Caramel, citrus, slight grapefruit, grassy and piney hops, toffee, biscuit bread, maple, slight peppercorn, earthy and metallic hop notes, oranges and herbal bitterness

The alcohol is somewhat noticeable in this one. I think it gets better as you drink more of it but in the beginning it wasn’t overly impressive. I think the hop character over powers the rest of the beer but some may find this appealing. I like more tropical hop characters but these are more herbal to explain what I mean. The balance is somewhat impartial. You get more hop than malt but that is not too bad at at all. While overall this is still a very good beer, there are other ambers that do more wonders. Still worth the try for sure if you love ambers.

Yuengling Traditional Lager

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558803_10101118061348060_873771260_nRating: 2.8/5

Yuengling Traditional Lager is a 4.4%ABV American Red Lager

Description: 
An iconic American lager famous for its rich amber color and medium-bodied flavor – with a roasted caramel malt for a subtle sweetness and a combination of cluster and cascade hops, this true original delivers a well-balanced taste with very distinct character.
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Brewed by one of the oldest breweries in the United States of America and made in the east coast. Long a go a buddy of mine recommended that I try this one. I was able to find it at Ramirez Liquor in Pico Rivera California which is kind of rare to find really. The bottle came in a green bottle but was a definite pale amber look to it. The aromas I got from this are the ones I usually get from Heineken green bottles, but once in the glass I sense some fragrance of nuts, grain and caramel. The flavors are also like Heinneken a bit but with some caramel malty honey taste. Some flavors of metallic, grains, nutty cereal, slight caramel note, slight grassy bitter notes. As the beer went on, the more honey and caramel notes started to arise better than its Heineken profile made it to. That’s where the good stuff was. I think this lager would probably be a lot better on tap. Unfortunately it could be hard to find here in the West. There was no bottled on date for this one and usually for lagers and those in green or clear bottles are more enjoyed fresh than set to sit for later consumption. While this is still not the best lager ever, it is indeed better than some of the other lagers I have tried in the past. The beer does have more character than the average lager and I could tell, it is just that the green bottle adds some good portion of that Heineken flavor. Some of this isn’t nearly too bad as some of the Fantome beers that come in green bottles are simply amazing but also very unique since they use mushrooms for brewing. So yeah, not all green bottles are bad, but don’t expect them to age well.

Life and Limb series Rhizing Bines collaboration by Dogfish Head and Sierra Nevada

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733906_10101099854175380_1884044036_nRating: 4/5

Life and Limb series Rhizing Bines collaboration by Dogfish Head and Sierra Nevada is an 8%ABV Double India Pale Ale with Bravo and #644 hops.

Label: 
Rhizing Bines is a collaborative IPA using the best of both coasts: Carolina-grown red fife wheat and Dogfish Head’s continual-hopping from the East and Sierra Nevada’s estate-grown caramel malt and Torpedo dry-hopping from the west.
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This is the second beer of the Life and Limb series I have the honor to try. The first collaboration I had was a dark ale. This one is an IPA. Upon opening this beers there was a nice honey rich and grassy hop fragrance. Some very slight breadiness, citrus, grapefruit, caramel and biscuit aromas. There are flavors of hop oil and honey. Reminds me of 120 min IPA but not as ABV strong or complex. Flavors of grapefruit, orange, coriander, lemon grass, grapes, caramel, maple, berries, slight flowers, some honey and toast bread flavor, somewhat of a barley wine note and butterscotch. Not the typical IPA. The flavor says it all. While still hoppy, it is not like a typical grassy IPA. It goes more along the lines of like an amber. There seems to be more malts in this. Not a bad thing in my opinion as I think this beer is delicious and refreshing. Just do not expect much of the bitterness or tropical flavors you would from an IPA or DIPA in this case. Still, worth getting as it is nice to taste those hops without the bitterness. Although bitterness is part of what hops are all about.