Which Should I Drink First?

I went to Sams Wine and Spirits (and beer too) a few nights ago and this is what I picked up. Your job now is to tell me the order in which I should drink them.... Here are the rules. Highest votes gets consumed first! One per night. I am not required to drink every night if I don't feel like it. One vote per person.

I'd never heard of Reunion beer before. Very cool! Great idea.
I'm going to have to find some now.

I say conduct the drinking like a taste test, start light and go dark....I voted for the pilsner.

The sad thing is, I went there looking for two beers in particular and they were, sadly, out of both of them. There was shelf space, but they were just out.

I wanted to try a Rochefort 10, and I wanted to get a Hob Goblin for comparison in anticipation of my (Orfy's) clone being ready. Oh well, guess I'll have to go back again sometime....


I'll tell you though, that was an expensive 7 pack there! I think I paid about $45 for those seven beers. I had to work a couple of hours of overtime last night just to pay for them. LOL But, it's all in the name of research!!!

Oh, and by all means... anybody...

Feel free to comment on my selections!

Craig5_12 said:

I say conduct the drinking like a taste test, start light and go dark....I voted for the pilsner.

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I'm wondering if the pilsner is going to be lighter than the IPA. Heck, I'm wondering what an Imperial Pilsner is supposed to taste like!!!! lol...

I don't think the light-to-dark thing matters so much if you aren't tasting them at the same time. And sadly, my budget won't allow for me to crack them all open for little samples.. this has to tide me over for awhile....

Toot said:

The sad thing is, I went there looking for two beers in particular and they were, sadly, out of both of them. There was shelf space, but they were just out.

I wanted to try a Rochefort 10, and I wanted to get a Hob Goblin for comparison in anticipation of my (Orfy's) clone being ready. Oh well, guess I'll have to go back again sometime....

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We swung by the Sam's in Highland Park the other day and they have a few Hobgoblins kicking around.

But they didn't have New Hollands' Dragon's Milk, which we need, honestly, because we're trying to formulate a clone for it

The Orval is the 'fish out of water' in that selection (pun intended). I said Skull Splitter because I have no clue what it is, I am guessing some insanely hopped thing-a-majig. They are seem to be big beers except the Orval. Looks like a great line up though, I am jealous hehe.

Orval.. 45 for seven thats not so bad. I paid 30 for 4 yesterday. Every single one was over 9% and one 18% one.

I only voted for Orval, because I've haven't had it.

I think light to dark is the way to go here.

Let us know your thoughts on that Imperial Pilsner. I almost bought one the other day just for the cool bottle. It was pricey though at about $11.00.

Review of Rogue's Imperial Pilsner...

Surprisingly cloudy, sort of like my Maibock. I poured it gently and I would still declare it to be "clear enough", but it was definitely on the swampier end of clear, even with a gently pour.

If you wanted a barleywine to serve as a lawnmower beer, this would be it! It's seriously hoppy, about 70-some IBU's and it's light enough. I think hop heads would really enjoy it as a sort of moderate IPA, not really hardcore like some, but just a tasty beverage for hop heads. Me though, I'm not a hop head. I don't think it's a very well balanced beer. It has maybe 10 IBU's too many. There's some really good maltiness going on there, but it's pretty well covered up, if not from the hops, than from the yeast. The yeast strain doesn't seem intended for malty beers, it has a sort of a sharp bite to it that seems better suited for hoppy beers and ales. I suppose that is a good thing when you are known for high gravity beers (because with those, getting enough hoppiness can become a challenge).

The imperial brown ale by Rogue, I expect to be better balanced. The Imperial Pilsner is good, but it's pretty close to an IPA flavor-wise.

The smell has a very fresh scent, slightly citrusy and bright. There is some good maltiness there, but it's just slightly hidden too much by the hops. I dare say I get some suggestion of Belgian beers in this one, there's a slight yeastiness, and a slight candy-sugar aftertaste that should be familiar to people who enjoy Belgians.

The finish is a little too bitter for my palate, though I imagine most people who like Rogue products will love it. There are even some banana and a hint of clove flavors that you will notice. Overall, it has a pleasing aftertaste, though, like a pilsner, it tends to finish a little dry and a little weak- that, to me, is surprising for a beer of this strength.

All in all, it goes down smoothly. With regard to it being an "Imperial Pilsner", it is certainly up there, for a pilsner, at 8.8%ABV. I'd order it in a bar, but I can't say it's worth the $13 I paid. It's a novelty, sort of an IPA with a more mellow, subdued flavor and emphasis on hops flavor, rather than smell... all in all, a satisfying beer, I'm glad I bought it, but I won't be plunking down for a sixer. I'm betting you IPA lovers will be able to find better alternatives in that direction as well... for a lower price.

What the heck, it's a neat little lager.... but with all the hops and alcohol, it might as well be an ale. There's not much lager character here except from the smoothness of the aftertaste... that is very lager-like, but it's certainly not enough to impress most middle-of-the-road lager drinkers... and it's probably a bit too cloying for most IPA lovers...

Toot's Rating: 8.1

Excellent review.
Thanks.

I really like that Skull Splitter. A bar near Sox park usually stocks that and I drink it all the time - very smooth and rich!

Can't wait until opening day!!

Toot said:

Oh, and by all means... anybody...

Feel free to comment on my selections!

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I've tried a handful of products by Great Divide, and overall, they are not impressing me much at all. Didn't like their double IPA, couldn't stand their Oak-Aged Imperial Stout, the IPA was okay, and the Fruit Beer was decent. I kept going back because they have the perfect little brown bottles, but I think I've seen enough at this point.

One final thought on the Rogue Imperial Pilsner. Now that I've had some time to ponder it, I must say this: If you love IPA's and Belgians, this may be the beer for you! It is very much smack dab between those two styles.

Well, tonight, it is a toss up between Trafalger IPA and Rogue's Brown. On the one hand, I'm in the mood for something dark and malty, on the other hand, the point of this thread was to pick the order that I drink the beers in... so perhaps I should treat the tie as an "equal" and come up with a different system to decide. Hmm...

After 5 seconds of careful deliberation, I will go with the "lightest to darkest" approach... but only in the case of a tie such as this. IPA it is...

Toot said:

After 5 seconds of careful deliberation

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You have the patience of a saint!

Impressions on Trafalgar IPA.

It's a little darker than I expected. It has a bit less head than I expected. I had to pour the last few ounces rather aggressively to get over a half an inch of head. That's a British Ale though, so what do you expect? In fact, they say that the beer is brewed to an original 19th century recipe, so I guess that makes sense. Another interesting sidenote from the back of the bottle is that it is imported by Rogue Ales, Newport OR. It's 6% ABV. It states the hops are "traditional 'Goldings' variety grown around Ledbury, Herefordshire.

The thing that stood out on the first sip is the water. You can taste the minerals, sort of well-water like... but not really in a bad way. It sort of adds to the character of the beer. I'd guess it's around 55-60 IBU's and pretty light on the pallate, a touch on the dry side. The clarity is somewhere halfway in between the Rogue Imperial Pilsner and a normal filtered beer. If my homebrews were that clear, I would be quite happy, but I suppose there are still plenty of people out there who would say it's "cloudy". It just a matter of perspective, I suppose.

This strikes me as a great lawnmower beer, something to get your BMC friends into different beers. The hops bitterness may be a bit too much, but the minimal aftertaste and lack of mouthfeel ought to be familiar to them.

There's really not much to the aroma, but the bitterness is fairly intense, probably due to the lack of head- less aroma dispersal.

A thought just hit me. APPLES!! This beer has an apply aftertaste that is completely overcome by the bitterness initially, but as the bitterness dissipates, you definitely notice some appleness, not like an apple cider, but like a bite out of a fresh apple- watery, sweet, flat, and flavorful. It sort of makes your mouth water a bit from the dryness.... just like biting a real apple, or taking a sip of BMC.

I also noticed that the yeast used for bottling is probably a different strain. I say this only because it is amazingly flocculant. It clumps in the bottom of the glass and goes nowhere. It doesn't add to the cloudiness of the beer, it just sinks to the bottom. I'm figuring it's just got to be a bottling strain. Otherwise, the original strain might be good for like a kolsch or other light bitter beer.

This beer wouldn't satisfy the true hop heads. It's very dry. It's highish in alcohol (6%ABV). It's bitter without a great hops aroma. I guess as a historical artifact, being brewed from an original recipe, it's a very cool beer. I'd definitely order one over anything available from the large breweries in America, but as far as micros go, I'm not terribly impressed. Conclusion, it's an old-fashioned beer that's great for the novelty, it's a nice conversation piece, but there's better beers out there. Flavorwise, it's like an apple sprayed with a hint of a floral perfume. I say, though with trepidation, that this is the dryest alcoholic beverage I've ever consumed. Maybe some champagnes are in the same ballpark, but it's pretty darn dry....

Toot's rating: 6.6

Toot said:

If you love IPA's and Belgians, this may be the beer for you! It is very much smack dab between those two styles.

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I tried the Avery Imperial Oktoberfest a while ago, and I had a similar thought. There was a distinct yeastyness to it, like a mix between an Oktoberfest and a Belgian. It was OK, but I dont think Ill have another.

- magno

ROGUE'S REUNION IMPERIAL BROWN ALE


Ladies and gentlemen, we have a winner!!!!

This is a beer I would order again and again. Too bad it's a limited addition.

There are a lot of beers that are said to have a reddish hue, but this one is deep ruby red, absolutely gorgeous! It pours with a very thick and luscious head and at first I thought it was too hoppy, but then as the head went down, I was left with an incredibly well-balanced beer. Excellent maltiness, with plenty of hops. Subtle hints of caramel and chocolate in a beer that comes off as much lighter than the 7.5%ABV suggests is should.

With all that said, this really isn't my style of beer. I prefer a more malty profile while this one is pretty bitter. Nevertheless, I've definitely got to have a few more of these. They are fantastic.



Toot's rating: 9.3%

I went to the Rogue bar in San Fran last Friday. They had around 30 beers on tap, all but 4 were Rogue beers. The absolute best out of the 12 I tried was Brewer, named after one of the owner's dogs that died this year. Very good and well balanced.

On the other hand, there was a bottle of the 10000th beer brewed anniversary bottle. They wouldn't sell it to me at any price. They only had 30 bottles of it from Rogue and were having an unveiling party last night (4/2). Well, I'm not there anymore, I came home on the 1st! Guess I'll have to try and find a bottle locally.

I have sampled the Orval, but the review will be withheld for a bit. In the mean time, I am sampling the Skull Splitter...

SKULL SPLITTER

8.5%ABV, eh? Doesn't taste like it. It's really smooth. This could be a dangerous beer. The clarity of the beer compares with that of BMC. It's incredibly clear. The color is nice too, sort of a dark copper, not as dark as the Rogue Imperial Brown.

It's surprisingly thin and not terribly malty. Not terribly hoppy either. It's along the lines of a Scottish Ale (I don't remember if that's what the bottle says, but that's what it tastes like).

Not much of an aftertaste. If you have a friend who likes a couple of dark beers like warsteiner dunkel or smithwicks, this might be a nice introduction to microbrews. I'd actually like to compare this beer to a Smithwicks. The flavor profile seems to be similar.

It's a nice, very drinkable beer. It'd make a good dark lawnmower beer if it weren't 8.5%ABV.

Toot's rating: 7.7

I have settled into a nice drinking routine now... I drink the beer at night, sleep on it, but leave about an ounce or two in the glass for me to sample in the morning. Of course, I have to work so I can't "drink" in the morning, but that's when your tastebuds are at their best and I don't think an ounce or two consumed more than 3 hours before work is going to get me fired from my job.

GREAT DIVIDE'S OLD RUFFIAN

If I recall, I paid about $8 for a 22 ouncer. That price isn't bad. And neither is the beer. Just think of it as beer candy. Anybody who's tried a strawberry candy knows that the candy flavor is an exaggerated version of the real thing. Well that's what this beer is. At 90 IBU's and 10.2%ABV, you know this is a BIG beer! Boy is it ever!

The malty flavors are fantastic, very rich and velvety, carmelly and sweet without the syrupy taste that tends to linger with some barleywines. The malt profile is very nice for a "lighter (read: not black) barleywine.

The hops are intense, almost too intense, exaggerated. Did I mention it had 90 IBU's?

The clarity is mediocre.

I wouldn't order one of these beers in a bar, but I will be buying a CASE of this beer. It's too strong to really enjoy more than one, especially a 22 ouncer. It's all over the place in terms of flavor, it tastes sort of schizophrenic, it hasn't found its identity yet. The hops and the malt are not well integrated and to me that means one thing.... it needs to age.

And that's my conclusion on this beer. If you buy a couple and let them age, in a couple of years, you might have something very awesome. The flavors haven't really integrated yet. It needs more time. I guess I can't blame great divide for not aging their barleywines for a few years, but this is where you can really get a great deal. Buy up these beers, stick them in your closet and forget about them. I predict that in 2-5 years, you will have something which, flavorwise, is worth five times more than you paid.

Toot's rating: 8.3 (9.5 for its potential)

Want to hear something terrible? I've never had any of those.

ayrton said:

Want to hear something terrible? I've never had any of those.

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Perhaps you'll fare better with my next comparison test....

so far I have 6 bottles of different commercially available ciders lined up and am looking for more...