Refined Tastes or Precise to a Fine Degree- BEER

I figured it was time for a topic that was different from fishing and tying but still goes hand in hand with such activities. BEER! Undergraduate, graduate school, and beyond were spent drinking such popular brands as Coors, Olympia, Milwaukee's Best, Shaffer, Hamm's, Schlitz, PBR, Mickey's, Colt 45, and a beer from Aldi Foods affectionately labeled Beer. My mouth is watering now; but talk about hangovers of the worst kind. Not that any hangover is good but hangovers from cheap beer top them all.

Now I live by the old Skip Pierce adages, "life's too short to drink cheap beer" and "if you drink that "stuff" you are sure to piss foam for 3 days". For those who dont know Skip, he's one of those great men I consider one of my "elders". A crotchety, Irish fisherman who is 3/4's of a century old, and has the best dry sense of humor you will find. One of those men you are proud to call a friend and go belly up to the bar with. As far as I know his word is gold; his only downfalls are he is a Carolina Panther and Boston Celtic fan. Go Lakers!

Anyhow, at 43 I feel my tastes in food and beer have become refined to the nth degree. We are all entitled to our individual tastes and I have mine. I enjoy all the greater things in life- authentic Thai, Japanese, Indian, Mexican, Filipino, and yes, American food and, of course, a good beer to compliment such fine cuisine (or even a good beer by itself).

Some may call me a beer snob, braggart, highbrow, name-dropper, parvenu, pretender, smarty pants, or stiff neck but there is something to be said about a tasty micro brew in appropriate beer glass.

So what's in a beer glass? Hopefully beer, but there's much more to be found. Though some beer novices say "the vast majority of glassware is just marketing," this couldn't be further from the truth. As BeerAdvocates, we feel that beer drinkers deserve better than this. So here's the real deal ...

Sure, there's a marketing component to beer glassware, but one only needs to look beyond the branding to discover that something bigger is taking place. As soon as the beer hits the glass, its color, aroma and taste is altered, your eye candy receptors tune in, and your anticipation is tweaked. Hidden nuances, become more pronounced, colors shimmer, and the enjoyment of the beer simply becomes a better, more complete, experience.

Still think it's just marketing? Well the sophomoric pun "head is good" has a mature side. Scientific studies show that the shape of glassware will impact head development and retention. Why is this important? The foam created by pouring a beer acts as a net for many of the volatiles in a beer. What's a volatile? Compounds that evaporate from beer to create its aroma, such as hop oils, all kinds of yeast fermentation byproducts like alcohol, fusels and fruity esters, spices or other additions. So a glass that promotes a healthy foam head may enhance the trapping of certain volatiles. And as varying levels of head retention and presentation are desired with different styles of beers, different styles of glassware should be used accordingly. Presentation marries science. BeerAdvocate

Some may like an old fashioned, mass produced American brew and some may like the fruits of a finely brewed, small batch micro brew. I prefer the latter. It's good ole' human craftsmanship at its best. There are  MANY STYLES OF BEER out there and I, unlike others, prefer the high octane flavor of Double IPA's, Belgian Strong Pale Ales, Belgian IPA's, Tripels, American IPA's, and American Double/Imperial IPA's. I dont believe that "any beer is good beer". Everyone has different tastes and we are entitled to the FREEDOM of having individual tastes.

Here are my top 5, well 6. I had a hard time breaking it down to so few because I enjoy the taste of so many; but these are some of my precise tastes to a fine degree.

1. Bell's Hop Slam

Brewed by:
Bell's Brewery, Inc. 
Michigan, United States

Style | ABV
American Double / Imperial IPA |  10.00% ABV

Notes:
Winter. Serving types had: bottle (1520), on-tap (189), cask (18), growler (14).

Brewed with honey. Hoppy as hell.
A biting, bitter, tongue bruiser of an ale. With a name like Hopslam, what did you expect?

2. Van Steenberge Brewery Piraat

Brewed by:
Brouwerij Van Steenberge N.V. 
Belgium

Style | ABV
Belgian IPA |  10.50% ABV

Notes:
Year-round. Serving types had: bottle (659), on-tap (73), cask (1).

A robustly bitter strong Belgian pale ale.
Piraat is a wickedly rich and rounded brew that packs a mighty punch. The powerful glow builds up from inside. Deep golden with a subtle haze. Lots of hops and malt. Mild sweetness. Reminiscent of bread dough, spices and tropical fruits.

3. Avery Brewing Company Maharaja

Brewed by:
Avery Brewing Company 
Colorado, United States

Style | ABV
American Double / Imperial IPA |  10.30% ABV

Notes:
Rotating. Serving types had: bottle (980), on-tap (169), growler (12), cask (7), nitro-bottle (1).

ABV varies slightly batch to batch.
Much like its namesake, this imperial IPA is regal, intense and mighty. With hops and malts as his servants, he rules both with a heavy hand. The Maharaja flaunts his authority over a deranged amount of hops: tangy, vibrant and pungent along with an insane amount of malted barley - fashioning a dark amber hue and exquisite malt essence.

4. Lagunitas Hop Stoopid

Brewed by:
Lagunitas Brewing Company 
California, United States

Style | ABV
American Double / Imperial IPA |  8.00% ABV

Notes:
Year-round. Serving types had: bottle (950), on-tap (67), cask (7), growler (6).

Mouthful of Hops and huge rich Malt has a guarantee built right into the name!

5. Founders Double Trouble

Brewed by:
Founders Brewing Company 
Michigan, United States

Style | ABV
American Double / Imperial IPA |  9.40% ABV

Notes:
Rotating. Serving types had: bottle (626), on-tap (73), growler (10).

86 IBUs and 9.4% ABV.
An imperial IPA that was brewed to turn your world upside down. Hops have got you coming and going. Pungent aromatics up front paired with a malt balanced backbone and a smooth bitter finish.

6. Chimay Tripel

Brewed by:
Bières de Chimay (Abbaye Notre Dame de Scourmont) 
Belgium

Style | ABV
Tripel |  8.00% ABV

Notes:
Year-round. Serving types had: bottle (1002), on-tap (162), nitro-tap (2), growler (1).

The beer's flavor, as sensed in the mouth, comes from the smell of hops. Above all it is the fruity notes of muscat and raisins that give this beer a particularly attractive aroma.


WOW! That was one of the hardest things I've ever had to do. It's only 8am but I am now craving some suds. Now I have an even better appreciation for those who have to taste food and drink for the purpose of review. Andrew Bourdain is one lucky soul. These aren't the only beers in the world that are great but they are one's I crave and go back to on a regular basis. Several are small batch beers so they are only available for a short time during certain times of the year. Thanks to BeerAdvocate and Gails Hops and Grapes for being by my side.

On another note,  Old Hickory Brewery (a local brewery here in Hickory) gets an honorable mention for their new beer Death By Hops. Amazing!

Death By Hops- Winner of the First Olde Hickory Pro Am competition. Very limited production. Our brew master says:
       71lbs of high alpha hops were used to make this limited production beer of only 13 barrels. That’s just over 20 grams of hops used for each pint! DBH was brewed with 2 row barley, Carapils and Crisp Crystal 45 malts and fermented to 7% alc/vol. DBH was hopped with 5 different West Coast hops: Chinook, Columbus, Simcoe, Centennial and Cascade. Additionally, DBH was twice dry hopped with different combinations of these hops. The net result is an amazing aroma of ripe juicy fruit mixed in with a bouquet of spring flowers. DBH was brewed to a level of bitterness of 108 IBU’s, and leaves a lingering bitterness; it is, after all, a Double IPA!