Trout Slayer Wheat Ale

A second tasting of one of the new taps that 8th St. Grille has to offer. I don't have to be at work until a lot later in the afternoon due to boiler problems, so why not get some mid-day tasting done at my favorite bar!
Shout out to Lucas Westblade for acknowledging over a year and a half ago that it was absurd I never tried this beer...Lucas, the Michigan Native.
AND ironically, right as I finish this post, Chad, the Big Sky marketing manager walks in with Dennis, 8th St. Grille's and West MI distribution sales rep.
4.7% ABV

Appearance: Bright golden blonde in color with an absolute clarity, paralleled but only the...well...best filtered beers out there. The head is white, and soft and foamy, though dissipation is rather quick, leaving a thin white ring around the inner perimeter of the glass. The beer itself shows very little signs of activity, with the appearance of carbonation almost negligible.
Aroma: Grain comes through most prominently in the scent followed by a faint peppery aroma contributed from the hops. A bit green and floral too, but otherwise very limited in the smell.
Taste: Wheat and biscuit malt are my first sensations, with the wheat and grain husk bitterness falling into the second half of the beer. The front is mild and again, biscuity recollection a flavor of basic 2-row. There is a definitive mid point where the carbonation draws the line. Nothing too fantastic happens in the front, but the second half holds two characteristics: that grain flavor that was noted earlier, and the hops, specifically Mt. Hood with a peppery burst of bitterness to balance. As the beer warms, more of a tannic outdoorsy flavor develops.

Mouthfeel: Light and bubbly with a foamy texture to give a perception of more of a body. Very easy to drink and crisp. Bitterness is on the higher side to make for that refreshing bite at the end, but almost over drys the mouth, more than one would typically want when going for a beer of its stature (namely, color)
Overall Impression: Definitely a difference to the typical heat ale category, where this beer actually a) retains hop character b) is extremely bright and clear and c) limits its yeasty, phenolic and wheat-grain based citrus. Filtering must be a bitch! In the end, one could draw a subtle hint of lemon when acknowledging all flavors holistically.

Bobo's Robust Powder

Thanks to Thomas Behne for bringing this beer over on Friday night as I hosted the Singh Family for a pizza dinner party. We designed a total of six pizzas with a crust made of Straight Pipe Stout, and vegetables ranging from black beans to kale to tomato and artichoke brochette. Tasted Saturday Evening prior to another dinner party catered by Josh and Andy with Deer backstrap.
6.2 % AV

Appearance: Upon the pour, there erupts a large soapy beige head with a partial dense foam consistency. Lacing is styrafoamed and dry. Very dark brown in the glass, nearly black. The beer is clear at the pour.
Aroma: In the forefront, there is some roasted character with an astringent scent. Some yeast qualities are present. Smokey, yet sweet, a presence of chocolate and a burnt, roasted coffee aroma.The aroma is less appealing than the flavor.
Taste: Fortunately in the flavor there is more chocolate than any sorts of roasted flavors or coffee. Rich in taste and sweetness, mixed with smoky undertones. The front is choked full with a bitter-sweetness of cocoa and molasses. I don't get very much licorice or burnt flavors. The finish is rounded out by an astringent, coffee-flavored bitterness. As it warms, the chocolate becomes more reminiscent of coffee.
Mouthfeel: Creamy and smooth mouthfeel. The texture is a bit chalky and leaves a bit of a coating. The body is medium-heavy thanks to some earthy sweetness and carbonation is fairly light.
Overall Impression: What stood out to me in this beer was the astringency in the smell, while the taste boasted a chocolate flavor. Nevertheless, as the beer warms up this flavor becomes more coffee flavor than anything else.

Powder Hound Winter Ale

Thanks to Dan Nevin for getting this for me yesterday. He bought me a 12 bottle craft pack of Smuttynose and traded in one of each for this Powder Hound. I had first seen this at John's Grocery in Iowa City. Tasted following an hour of shoveling the years first snow! Powder Hound is apparently named after a Triathlon in Montana.

Appearance: Ambered and clear with the occasional bubble of carbonation rising to the surface. The head is strong and firm with a soapy coating. Lacing is dry and styrafoamed. Very attractive.
Aroma: Biscuit malt and a bready fore scent. I get a lot of spicy hops in this too, with notes of citrus and bittering orange peel/coriander. Floral.
Taste: Caramel and biscuit define the front sweetness of this beer. To follow is a fantastically spiced second half. The hops are both floral and earthy with a citrus personality. I'd like to say some variety of either Horizon hops or Liberty (which are one of my favorites). Again, bittering orange peel, mango and a floral citrus are most apparent. The finish is dry, but with a worty taste in the back of the throat, or similar to dough balls/un fermented beer. Some alcohol at the end, but that might just be the hops talking.
Mouthfeel: Smooth with a bit of a bite at the end, but nothing substantial. I find this beer to be extremely easy drinking, and very well textured. Dry finish.
Overall Impression: I find myself becoming very fond of this beer. I certainly see myself getting a six pack of this in the future. Big Sky makes rich beers, and this is a beer that amps up the hops (whatever they may be) while still pushing a flavorful malt bill. Without the spices that are typical to this style, it boasts a robust flavor that is matched by few.


90/100

Moose Drool Brown Ale

Tasted Friday night while Jen and I were waiting for people to arrive for a small beer tasting event at our house. Thanks to Dan Nevin who brought us a six pack earlier that evening out of astonishment that I had yet to post a review for this beer.

Appearance: Pour was a light brown, while in the glass the beer settled to a mediocre mahogany color. Very clear. Head is strong and off white with a large accumulation around the inner perimeter of the glass.
Aroma: First off, I got a faint note of alcohol. As the beer rests in the glass, more of a toasted malt scent emerges, layered over a subtle hint of chocolate malt. Some fruit esters are even present, though to a moderate level.
Taste: Once the bubbly texture dissipates (distracting), one can pick out the toasted and kilned amber malts along with undertones of toffee. Together, mild chocolate is apparent along with an element of rootbeer/sassafrass. Towards the end, the fruit esters appear, somewhat related to pears. I also get tastes of cane sugar and perhaps minute additions of Fuggle hops. Maybe nutty, but the fruit tends to be over-masking.
Mouthfeel: Very bubbly and foamy across the entire palate. Due to this, the body is extremely light, nearing airy. A bit to round it out as is foams down the throat.
Overall Impression: I realize this beer can take different directions, depending on how you look at it. The obvious toasted malt and chocolate are a first thought, but once you acknowledge the different flavors separately, you can get caught up in the fruit and alternative sweetened flavors. I like this beer fore its many faces, while still being overall, a very inviting and all around good beer. Gateway for sure, up there with Fat Tire.


85/100

Cowboy Coffee Porter

Thanks to Elise Meyer who graciously donated this beer to the blog. Tasted following my first class of my last term at Augustana. This is the first Big Sky I've tasted/rated. Sorry for the dated label, it was the only one I could find.

Appearance: Extremely well sustained tan mocha head with a textured dense foam. The lacing dryly clings to the glass as the head slowly dissipates into a 1 fingers worth measure. The color is an robustly brown black color with no transparency.
Aroma: Aroma is predominantly vanilla and a couple other synthetic off components. There are hints of coffee but more so as chocolate and roasted malt. I also pick up mild hints of graininess and yeast. A little oakiness and molasses.
Taste: Reveals less vanilla than the aroma, but it still remains in the forefront of the flavor. Chocolate is a present character again in the taste with complements of the molasses and many other strange grain and wood tannins. Lightly roasted malt rounds out the beer but still with a yeasty component that continues to be deterring. The beer begins sweet and chocolaty and then gradually transitions into a yeasty roasted bitterness from remaining yeast particulates and hop resins. Finally there finishes a souring flavor with the dry element from alcohol. Generally this beer is very phenolic. The aftertaste leaves a smokey burnt flavor to the palate.
Mouthfeel: Smooth and big bodied and overall pretty creamy The carbonation is light but densely populated within the liquid making it a highly contributive factor to the soft texture to the mouth. The beer ends on a dry note from the alcohol and resins. Warming.
Overall Impression: There is a lot going on in this beer but some flavors come through more prominently than others, particularly the phenolic vanilla flavor which is only amplified in the aroma. The chocolate element is nice and sweet and also more apparent than coffee which therefore makes me wonder why it is called a coffee porter? Perhaps coffee was used and only donated a souring flavor to the finish, and not what the brewer had intended? Nevertheless I enjoy how the flavor develops as the beer drains from the glass, and the palate adjusts. Give it a chance. But not six chances.


75/100