Stroh's

I've consumed Stroh's in the past and have always considered it my go to beer along with Pabst and Schlitz (which I sadly can not obtain at my local distributor any longer) when I am low on money. I would like to mention that being low on money for me seems to be a recurring theme.

I paid $4.75 for a 6 pack of these guys at River Road Six Packs in Vandergrift, PA.

Stroh's is an American adjunct lager, 4.60% ABV. I consumed these from the can into a standard beer mug.

Appearance: The beer pours a very light, straw like, golden color. Just about the color of a decently hydrated urination. Stroh's produced a 2 finger, bubbly head that actually stuck around a bit longer than most AALs. Active carbonation bubbled it's way furiously to the top, supporting the bone white head.

Smell: Pretty standard for this style of beer. Mostly corny and adjuncty with a little bit of a light hint of lemons and grass. Like I said, not too much different than a Budweiser, Pabst, or Coors.

Taste/Mouthfeel: This is where Stroh's sets itself a part from the standard fair a bit. The

first taste you get is a slight citrus, lemon, grassy hop twang that turns into a bit of a

bitterness. The malt then shows it's face with a bit of a honey sweetness that finishes off with a little more hoppyness that turns into a bit of a grassy aftertaste. The beer is moderately

carbonated, not too little and not too much. Of course the beer is watery as well...what else would you expect?

Overall for the price, I really enjoy this beer on a hot, sweaty summer day. Where I buy my beer it usually ends up being a few dollars cheaper than PBR or Blatz which are a few of my other standard fridge keepers. Nothing too special, definitely a step up from Budweiser or Coors in my opinion but it's definitely no Stout or IPA.

I'll give Stroh's a 3.5/5 just for what it is and nothing else.

Beer mail #1 Newcastle Summer Ale

The fine folks at Heineken USA sent me a 6 pack of the Newcastle Summer Ale so that I could try it, at no expense to me. They even put it on over night shipping. The pack arrived without damage, neatly boxed, and ready for consumption in just a day.

Sierra Nevada Pale Ale

Sierra Nevada Pale Ale

I've had my share of Sierra Nevada Pale Ale bottles before and it has grown easily to be one of my all time favorite beers.

I absolutely love the bottle save for a few things. We will start with those. The bottle doesn't really give any background information about the beer or any statistics, or anything. It does however state:

"Sierra Nevada Pale Ale is a completely natural ale. There are no additives; only the finest malted barley, whole hops, brewers yeast, and crystal-clear water. The fine layer of yeast in each bottle is a result of the traditional bottle-conditioning process that produces carbonation naturally."

It's obvious from this and the website that Sierra Nevada puts great pride in the brews they produce. They should rightfully so.

I consumed the pale ale from a tulip glass out of a 24 Fl.oz bottle. I picked the bottle up at my local Giant Eagle for around $3.49 The beer comes in at 5.9% abv and 37 IBUs.

Look: Light amber, golden hue. The ale pours a medium 1 and a half finger length head. Very small bubbles begin bubbling to the top. Not too many though actually. I only observed around 10 or so bubbles a minute. This ale leaves behind a lot of beautiful, sticky lacing on the sides of the glass.

Smell: Very citrus like hops. A bit floral with

some big pine notes as well. Some sweet malt shows its presence. Sort of like a light honey or caramel smell, maybe some light brown sugar in there too.

Taste: Very nicely hopped. I'm a huge hop head like I have said before and this beer really hits the spot. Fairly moderate pineyness offsets just a bit of a floral twang. Some caramel and honey sweetness slides across the tongue just before you swallow which leads to another piney note from the hops. Very balanced beer.

Mouthfeel: Mildly carbonated. The label says that it's bottle conditioned so that means that the carbonation is naturally produced by the yeast that is left in the bottles. Medium body to the ale that seems to fit in perfectly with the other attributes. The beer finishes off a bit on the dry side, but in my opinion, this is just how a pale ale should be.

Overall: This is a fantastic beer. Easily one of my favorites. However, this is by no means a hopsplosion, or a hop bomb. If you are looking for something much bitter or stronger, this isn't the ale for you. I however really enjoy this ale and how well balanced it is. I'll give Sierra Nevada Pale Ale a 4/5.

Cheers!

Unearthly Imperial India Pale Ale

Southern Tier Unearthly IIPA

Everyone knows that I am a hop head. I'm not sure if you all have figured this out or assumed this by now, but I am completely head-over-heels for any beer that is just hopped out of this world.

I saw this beer, it was calling my name from the shelf at a local Giant Eagle store. I grabbed this bottle and hoisted it above my head like a treasure I discovered, except the gold inside was hops...or so I believed.

The beer is described as being "an uninhibited infusion of hops & oak" As I later found out, it's not what I was expecting, much to my chagrin.

Look: The beer poured a very rich, golden, amber color with a very subtle, dirty white head that didn't inflate to any great heights, and didn't stick around for the party.

Smell: Very fruity. The smell really excited me. The hops were right there, all up in my face. It sort of reminded me of strawberry jelly, or some sort of strawberry cake or candy. A bit of alcohol sneaks in after the sweet malt and fruity hoppy scent. The beer is 11% so the alcohol was knocking at the door at the last whiff.

Taste: Intensely sweet caramel-like taste with a moderate sour, soapy hop flavor. A bit of alcohol creeps up over the smoothly sweet malts, just enough to remind you are drinking a fairly modest alcoholic beverage. You know what though? It's not as hopped as I initially expected it to be. It did let me down a bit because of that. I love hop bombs and was expecting this to be one since it is an IIPA, however my hopes let me down a bit.

Mouthfeel: A little too thick feeling for an IIPA I believe. The beer is nicely carbonated though, just enough for what I feel it should be. Unearthly is also a bit sticky and slick. I take in fact that it comes from the hops. I do like the mouthfeel.

Well overall, the beer is a pretty good offering from Southern Tier. I am a bit disappointed that it failed me a bit in the hops area, but perhaps that was my own preconceived hops that it was going to bomb my taste buds with hops.

I'll give this beer a 3.5/5.

I mean, I must apologize though, it's just not what I wanted. I would recommend this beer for someone who is looking for something a bit sweeter, but to any hop heads out there like me, don't bother picking this one up. I don't think this one will be in my fridge again.