Deschutes Brewery Black Butte Porter

Black Butte Porter
Black Butte Porter

I recently had the pleasure of sampling the Black Butte Porter from Deschutes Brewery of Bend, Oregon.  The Black Butte Porter is the flagship beer of the brewery, and after tasting, I can understand why.

It was a nice, smooth, rich porter with a nice chocolate flavor.  There are usually two types of porters found in America: those that have a lot of hops, and those that don’t.  The Black Butte is the latter, making it a delightful beer with low bitterness and smooth chocolaty goodness that I could see myself enjoying many of.

Have you tried Deschute’s Black Butte Porter?  What did you think?

Michelob Irish Red

Michelob Irish Red
Michelob Irish Red

Yesterday, I had a chance to sample Michelob Irish Red. The bottle shape and label were done nicely and caught my eye. The pour of the beer into a glass displayed a nice copper color you would expect in an Irish Red, and had a tan head that dissolved into the glass quickly.

The first sniff was a sweet malty aroma, but not one that really excited me.   There were similar smells to other Anheuser-Busch products.  Mouth feel was surprisingly full, but taste was sub-par by my standards. The hop to malt balance in the flavor was good, but there was the same stale sweetness picked up in the initial smell, maybe due to the yeast used in the fermentation process. The taste finished fairly clean, but did hold on for a little while.

I would recommend this beer if you like inexpensive Anheuser-Busch products, because that is what it is. Definitely a drinkable beer for the money, but personally, I would pay the extra money to get a Samuel Adams Irish Red or even a good ol’ Killian’s Irish Red Lager.

Have you tried the Michelob Irish Red?  What did you think?

Beer of the Day: Kells Irish Lager

Kells Irish Lager

Rogue Brewery in Newport, Ore., describes Kells Irish Lager as an “Irish style lager with a smooth, mellow flavor and an apple crisp finish,” and that’s pretty “spot on”. It’s a bit of a departure from the norm for Rogue, which turns out unique, full-bodied ales with lots of hops and alcohol (think Dead Guy Ale or Brutal Bitter). Kells is an easy drinking session brew, is a close cousin to Harp and certainly worth a try. It’s also billed as a perfect accompaniment to a stout when making a “Half and Half”, which is half stout, half lager.  The other Irish favorite is the “Black and Tan”, which is half stout, half ale (usually Smithwick’s or Bass).

Have you tried Kells Irish Lager?

Good, Better, and Best Beer to Enjoy on St. Patty’s Day

Lovely Day for a Guinness!
Lovely Day for a Guinness!

It’s that time of year again, when you get out your green, and celebrate your Irish-ness, even if you aren’t Irish.  Now, there is a hierarchy to quality of beer on St. Patrick’s day, and I’m going to break it down for you.

Here’s the category breakdown:

Good: Green beer.  This is what most folks think of when they think of St. Patrick’s day.  This is usually no more than your regular run-of-the-mill light beer with green dye in it.  It’s pretty boring and not very exciting, except it’s green.

Better: Killian’s Irish Red, Michelob Irish Red.  These are a couple of brews that don’t fall into your green-beer category, but are still owned by the big guys.  They are close to your craft-brewed products, but they are not as good.  One advantage to these is that they are usually available.

Best: Boulevard Irish Ale, Samuel Adams Irish Red, Guinness, Harp, Kilkenny, Smithwick’s, Raccoon River Stonecutter Stout, Gray Brewing Co. Busted Knuckle Irish Style Ale, etc.  Many of these beers are either made in Ireland, or are craft brews that are made by some excellent craft brewers who strive to create an authentic Irish-style stout, Irish Style Red Ale, or other Irish beer.  If you can get your hands on these, this is the best choice.  You’ll thank me later!

So, when you decide what to have to celebrate today, just go for one of the “Best” beers, because that’s what St. Patty’s is all about!  Enjoy the best!

Gray Brewing Co. Busted Knuckle Irish Ale

Busted Knuckle Irish Red
Busted Knuckle Irish Red

This evening, I tried the Busted Knuckle Irish Ale (Beer) from Gray Brewing Co. in Janesville, Wisconsin.

It was an Irish Red Ale style of beer, characterized by a honey-like aroma, with a sweet, caramel and roasted flavor.  It had a nice, lingering sweetness that stays with you.  It poured well, and the off-white head that stuck around for a while.

Irish Reds are a favorite of mine, and I put this one in my top three.

Have you tried the Busted Knuckle Irish Ale?