OK, the Florida blonde who lives in my house is great and I have no complaints about her. But I found another blonde I like too.
If you happen in your travels to find yourself changing planes in Charlotte Douglas International Airport, I recommend a Carolina Blonde. I thought it was going to be lame because on the menu it says it's Carolina Brewing's "American light beer." (That said, I'm not sure why I ordered it). But I'm glad I did. I was pleasantly surpised. (Maybe I just wanted to tell the waitress that I would like a large blonde).
It's bitter - which I like in my beers. Has a slight spiciness. A nice floral finish. Not worth a trip to North Carolina, but if you're there, seek out a big blonde.
Wednesday, July 4, 2007
The Germans are Coming, The Germans are Coming
The best place to go for beers in Boston might be Jacob Wirth Co. When you think of Boston, you think of Irish immigrants, and Portuguese, and Italians in the nawth end. You don't usually think of Germans.
But there was at least one German immigrant to this fine New England city and he founded a hell of a restaurant.
Jacob Wirth's has a daily beer special, which always makes me interested in a restaurant, and it has a magnificent selection of beers.
It's in the theater district - you can walk it from downtown or the Commons.
I first had a Magic Hat Hocus Pocus, a beer made in Vermont.
http://www.magichat.net/
It immediately loses points because it was served with an orange, and that made orange dominate the smell.
This is a summery English ale, made with wheat and Centennial hops. It would be refreshing on a hot, summer day, but it's a bit sweet.
On the Beer Eye scale, I'd give it a 4.
Wirth's has a decent selection of lambics, including Lindemann's Pomme, which you don't see that often, and has a whole lot of regional beers that are hard to find outside of New England. The place gets additional points for having Naragansett on tap. I didn't even know they still made it. It's not all that good, but it's a classic.
After the Hocus I had a Spaten Maibock on tap, which was the beer of the day.
http://www.spatenusa.com/
Maibocks are supposed to be served in May (or Mai). This beer has a nice golden color like a Czech lager. It has a slight sweet (malty) flavor at first, and a hint of floral hops flavor, but not too overpowering. In fact, not too much of anything. In my notes that night I wrote: "pedestrian, light beer." If you like flavorful beers like I do, beers that say, "HEY, YOU'RE DRINKING BEER," you can skip this one.
On the Beer Eye Scale, I'd give this one a 4.
I finished my evening at Worth's with a Whales Tale Pale Ale, partly because I like the rhyme and partly because this beer is made in Nantucket and so you can't go to Massachusetts and leave without trying it.
This beer is all over Boston - but hard to find elsewhere. Which is nice - the thought of truly local beers makes me warm and happy. As they say at Whale's Tale, "nice beer, if you can get it."
This is also an English-style pale ale, which I'm not as fond of as American style ales or India Pale Ales. Some reviewers have said this beer tastes like biscuits. I'm not sure I agree - but I'd like to try those biscuits.
Actually, I probably wouldn't like them, because I don't really like this beer much. Here's what I wrote in my notebook while I was drinking this "pale ale."
"Pretty dull beer. Not very hoppy. Not very pale." BORING.
Beer Eye Scale: 2. I think that's the lowest ever - although stay tuned, I had a beer in Chicago that will be worse when I get around to reviewing it.
But there was at least one German immigrant to this fine New England city and he founded a hell of a restaurant.
Jacob Wirth's has a daily beer special, which always makes me interested in a restaurant, and it has a magnificent selection of beers.
It's in the theater district - you can walk it from downtown or the Commons.
I first had a Magic Hat Hocus Pocus, a beer made in Vermont.
http://www.magichat.net/
It immediately loses points because it was served with an orange, and that made orange dominate the smell.
This is a summery English ale, made with wheat and Centennial hops. It would be refreshing on a hot, summer day, but it's a bit sweet.
On the Beer Eye scale, I'd give it a 4.
Wirth's has a decent selection of lambics, including Lindemann's Pomme, which you don't see that often, and has a whole lot of regional beers that are hard to find outside of New England. The place gets additional points for having Naragansett on tap. I didn't even know they still made it. It's not all that good, but it's a classic.
After the Hocus I had a Spaten Maibock on tap, which was the beer of the day.
http://www.spatenusa.com/
Maibocks are supposed to be served in May (or Mai). This beer has a nice golden color like a Czech lager. It has a slight sweet (malty) flavor at first, and a hint of floral hops flavor, but not too overpowering. In fact, not too much of anything. In my notes that night I wrote: "pedestrian, light beer." If you like flavorful beers like I do, beers that say, "HEY, YOU'RE DRINKING BEER," you can skip this one.
On the Beer Eye Scale, I'd give this one a 4.
I finished my evening at Worth's with a Whales Tale Pale Ale, partly because I like the rhyme and partly because this beer is made in Nantucket and so you can't go to Massachusetts and leave without trying it.
This beer is all over Boston - but hard to find elsewhere. Which is nice - the thought of truly local beers makes me warm and happy. As they say at Whale's Tale, "nice beer, if you can get it."
This is also an English-style pale ale, which I'm not as fond of as American style ales or India Pale Ales. Some reviewers have said this beer tastes like biscuits. I'm not sure I agree - but I'd like to try those biscuits.
Actually, I probably wouldn't like them, because I don't really like this beer much. Here's what I wrote in my notebook while I was drinking this "pale ale."
"Pretty dull beer. Not very hoppy. Not very pale." BORING.
Beer Eye Scale: 2. I think that's the lowest ever - although stay tuned, I had a beer in Chicago that will be worse when I get around to reviewing it.
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