Wine lovers get ready to try something new and see what you have been missing in the beer world. Saison Dupont is a world class brewery.
Saison Dupont
6.5% ABV
$9.95+dep, 750mL cork finish
Spicy, citrusy and straw colored, this beer has it all. Simply a miracle with food!
Enjoy it with salmon steaks, Thai food, spicy Mexican dishes, Vietnamese food, steaks, Cajun dishes, and well aged Gouda cheese. Great with barbecue or gumbos.
A concept that I think most beer enthusiasts have a good grip on is that beer is fun to drink. Too often I find wine shoppers caring more about the prestige of the wine they are purchasing than the fun associated with drinking it. Perhaps this is a growing trend in beer as well, considering how many people scramble to hoard away limited release beers, but I digress. Continue reading Beer, it’s fun to drink
My colleague, Nic Castro, has decried my beer of 2010 selection and argued for a more esoteric choice. He very much enjoyed the Infinium collaboration between Sam Adams and Weihenstephaner. He thought the Bitches’ Brew from Dogfishhead was most excellent. He also saw Alesmith’s IPA and Speedway Stout as candidates. He says that for a beer to qualify as beer of the year one should have to work to get their hands on it. This way the beer has proved that it is of substantial quality to draw in consumers before it is even available to be poured into a glass. He is an advocate of rarity because in some sense, if a beer is difficult to make it may not necessarily be made in great quantity. Further to that, if a beer is that good and took grand efforts to produce it should, in turn, take effort to procure. We do agree on relative affordability though. It is a sad thing to have a wonderful beer priced out of reach for those who desire it most. Continue reading Best Beers…
2010 was quite a good beer year. With it came some exceptional stuff like the brews from Element Brewing Company in Central MA and White Birch in Southern NH. Of course there were numerous special releases like the Life and Limb and Bitches’ Brew. I am going to really put myself out there right now and remark on an exceptional beer. I may go so far as to say that this is the beer of 2010. Building up to it like this, I am sure that some names are coming to mind right now and that those names likely include some of the more limited releases. Like I said, I am going to put myself out there and I am going to say that Sierra Nevada Celebration ale is indeed the beer of 2010. There are many reasons why I am willing to go so far as to make such a statement. I’ll even concede to some personal bias but, obviously, the main reason has to do with the quality of the brew. Celebration Ale is always good, but it seemed like this year’s batch was unusually good. Perhaps the hops enjoyed a better growing season? I found this year’s batch quite hoppy (as usual) but unusually fresh tasting. I also just happen to have a particular affinity for the style. I know that there are a lot of hop heads out there and this beer is good enough to satisfy those who love hops without being so over bearing that someone other than a hop enthusiast couldn’t enjoy it. The addition of more malt to bring it to an amber color and give it more body than a typical IPA also lends itself to the creation of a bold beer that remains somewhat approachable. In short, it just doesn’t let you down. Continue reading Beer of 2010?
It seems to me that the average beer consumer is decidedly more experienced than other consumers of alcoholic beverages. I’d like to think that beer enthusiasts possess a sense of adventure that drives them to try as many new beers as possible. Logic tells me that this level of experience is also supported by the simple fact that beer lends itself, due to accessibility, variety, ease of consumption and price, to easy experimentation. One does not really consider drinking a quick bottle of wine at the bar on the way home from work. The liver stamina required to support the exploration of multiple wines or liquors isn’t available to many of us, not to mention that it is likely to be prohibitively expensive. Certainly there are ways to explore and enjoy wine, such as visiting a beautiful wine region like Sonoma County. I am mainly referring to more of the daily approach to consuming – purchasing from your favorite purveyor of libations. Beer, in its glorious variety, is readily available at stores and bars and there is little to stand in the way of simply having a beer. This means that enthusiasts and casual drinkers alike can quite easily discover the world of beer. From that, I have interesting conversations about beer with people almost every day. Continue reading Beers we can’t get.
I think everyone has heard me gripe about the beer industry and its rush to change the seasons so I’ll keep it short this time. If you haven’t seen the new seasonal packages yet you will. Pumpkin beers and Oktoberfest beers are pouring in. When is Oktoberfest? September 18th – October 3rd. When is the first day of fall? September 23rd. When did the first pumpkin beer hit stores in a rush to curtail our already short New England summer (an industry move rivaled only by fashion)? July 28th. Ok – enough. We all know that beer companies are in a never ending rush to get the next season started. I suppose that a well made beer of any style is enjoyable at any time of year so get ready to enjoy some fresh brews. Continue reading What season is it?
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