Danek said:
Is that interesting in a good way, or interesting in an interesting way? I'd seen that recipe and was curious to know how it'd taste, but I'm not sure I'd put away five gallons of the stuff!
Well...It's interesting in a good way, but it is unique.
What it amounts to, if you've done any reading on the Midas Touch research, is an equal mixture of a light beer, a sweet white muscat wine, and mead, with a hint of Saffron, which is slightly bitter. It's carbed like a sparkling wine.
If you're interested in the history, here's some articles on it.
http://www.museum.upenn.edu/new/research/Exp_Rese_Disc/Mediterranean/Midas/feastremains.shtml
http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m3469/is_45_53/ai_94673455
So it has the body and color of a blonde or a hefe, a very noticable grapiness- like a sparkling wine, and a silky mouthfeel of a carbonated mead (Though to me the honey is lost in the flavors, at least until you let the glass warm up a bit.) And a saffron bite.....
Oh also a really noticeable alchohol "bite" heck, it's 9% after all.
The nose was very "hay-like" coming from the saffron.
The odd thing that my GF and I both noticed was that you feel a tingling in your extremeties when you drink it (and she only had half a glass- She loved the taste but thought it was to potent to drink a full 12 ounce- Next time we'll split and drink in wine glasses.) Looking up the medicinal properties of Saffron, I can see why it got the blood flowing...Saffron has been used for millenia because of it's various medicinal properties....
No it is not a daily drinking beer, but something special...If I do decide to brew it, I'll probably bottle it in Champagne Bottles to give as gifts.
According to Dogfish Head's website the beer is mentioned in "The Gourmet Slow Cooker, Simple & Sophisticated Meals from Around the World" by Lynn Alley where there is a recreation recipe of the lamb/lentil stew found in the tomb. THe author recomends serving it with Midas Touch.