Samuel Adams: Stony Brook Red

A few weeks ago my family left to the east coast for vacation. I was supposed to go but do to unforeseen circumstances I had to stay home. I couldn’t have wanted to go more but sometimes life just throws curveballs your way and you have to roll with them. I found this a good time to try a few different beers and become even better friends with Samuel Adams. There have been a couple of different Samuel Adams beers that I have reviewed on my blog in the past. As I try more of the beer from them, the more I enjoy the beers produced by them. This time around I tried their, “Stony Brook Red”, and it was fantastic. It is a beer that everyone can enjoy.

What lead me to try this beer was the bottle. I have came across many different bottles since I have started my blog but nothing like this one. So congrats on the great marketing team.

So when you first pop the cork on this beer you know what you are getting yourself into. You immediately smell the aromas of the fruit and the sweetness of the malts in this beer. But lets dive deeper into this beer.

Starting off, lets talk about what this beer is brewed with. The malts that are in this beer are two row pale malts, Munich dingemans special B and dingemans aromatic malts. The hops in this beer are of the Hallertau Mittelfrueh variety.  This beer is also brewed with a Belgian style top fermenting yeast. So that is just was is producing some of the great flavors that you are tasting when you are drinking this beer. But those ingrediants are only the beginning of the beer as well, what is the final product of those ingrediants will be sure to amaze you with every sip.

So after you pop the cork, the next step is to pour this beer into you favorite glass. This beer will pour to a dark reddish brown and like I said before this beer has a very sweet aroma to it. You will be able to smell the sweetness of the malts and a lot of the sweetness is also coming from the aroma of fruits. When I tried this beer the fruit that came to the top of my head was pear along with some dark fruits such as berries as well. It really depends on your nose to what you will smell exactly.  Then when you take your first sip you will get what you expect after smelling this beer. The beer has a sweet taste to it that has a lot of fruit accents in it. However, that is only part of the taste. You will of course get the sweetness of the malts, and the best park is the slight hint of the oak that comes from this beer aged in oak barrels and that hint of oak is what makes this beer fantastic.

So like I said this beer is surely going to be enjoyed by everyone. I say that because this beer has sweetness, tartness and a little bit of sour. This beer is not bitter at all and goes down really smooth. If you are having this beer with a meal I recommend that you try this beer with mussels you will be amazed at the way they pair together.

I recommend you try this beer in the very near future.

Cheers!!

Sapporo: Japan’s Oldest Beer

Back in 2007,  I decided that I was going to get away from the United States for a while and go to Japan.  I lived in Japan two years living in Japan and traveling to see all of the historic and iconic places. While I was there I was able to go to Osaka, Miajima and various other places. While I was there I was able to enjoy their culture, food and drinks. One of my favorite beers from Japan is Sapporo. It is Japan’s oldest beer and it began to be brewed in 1867.

This Beer pours to a clear yellow/Golden color  and has a pretty good size head. The  aroma of this beer is full of rice and hops. When you drink this beer that is what you will get as well. The hops is this beer are not over powering at all and allows it to go down very smoothly. This is a very crisp, refreshing beer that really pairs well with poultry, meat, and any other Asian cuisine.  If you are used to craft beer you may not find this beer one of the best but if you want to try a beer from Japan and want to try the best that they have, then you have to try this one.