KOTBR #153 - Camaraderie and Short Prose

Jim writes:

At one time, Hoosier Beer Geek's stock-in-trade was the beer roundtable. This was the whole reason the blog started seven years ago:  the beer review. Twice a month, we, as the Knights of the Beer Roundtable, would gather at someone's house, at a brewery, or at a bar to drink and review beer. Then we'd post our reviews, which usually focused on some sort of weird theme.

We don't do much reviewing anymore because we're busy old folks, but also because we came to realize that the value of the roundtable is not in the reviews themselves but in the fact that we get to see each other and enjoy each other's company (which these days doesn't happen often enough).

In short, camaraderie is the value of the roundtable.

So last week, we gathered for our seventh and final roundtable of the year. Ostensibly, this was going to be a holiday beer roundtable, but we really used it as an excuse to clear out our beer cellars and, yes, to renew our sense of camaraderie. Here are some thoughts on some of the beers from that benevolent beer gauntlet, conveyed in the spirit of the Four Word Film Review because no one likes long beer reviews. But I'm going to cheat a little and use five words for each beer instead of four:

The Bruery 2 Turtle Doves: Toasted pecans, not roasted birds.

Three Floyds Alpha Klaus Christmas Porter vertical (2011, 2012, & 2013): Younger Klaus is better Klaus.

August Schell Star of the North Berliner Weisse: Screw winter; summer beer's here.

AleSmith Yule Smith Imperial Red Ale: Just a jolly red DIPA.

He'Brew Jewbelation Reborn: Seventeen malts and hops. Meshuggah.

Goose Island Bourbon County Brand Coffee Stout (2013): Jump, java, and wail, man.

Goose Island King Henry (2012): Hail the Monarch of Barleywines!

Stiegl Grapefruit Radler: Don't wait; join #TeamRadler now.

Jolly Pumpkin Noel de Calabaza: Christmas spices. Tart finish. Excelente.

Perennial Sump Coffee Stout: Sump pumped up something delicious.

Four from the Bruery:  2 Turtle Doves, 3 French Hens, 4 Calling Birds, and 6 Geese a-Laying

Three Floyds Alpha Klaus Christmas Porter Vertical (2011, 2012, and 2013)

Perennial Abraxas Imperial Stout

August Schell Star of the North Berliner Weisse

AleSmith Yule Smith Imperial Red Ale

Jackie O's Mystic Mama IPA

Jackie O's Chomo-Lungma Honey Nut Brown Ale

Jason writes:

Hanukkah, Christmas
Yuletide, Saturnalia,
Kwanza, Festivus.

Holidays are here.
Here is my gift to you all:
Haiku beer review.

2 Turtle Doves makes
Mick Jagger sing brown sugar
Why you taste so good?

3 French Hens: boozy.
A fresh Belgian dark cookie
Like mom never made.

4 Calling Birds: ginger.
Skipper too. Professor builds
Coconut brewhouse.

6 Geese-a-laying:
Syrup sweet and quite a treat.
Will not hiss at you.

Alpha Klaus Vert.
Eleven, eh. Twelve, okay.
Thirteen: Yes! Hops! Best!

A cowboy meal: Sump.
Sam Elliot wakes up to
Whiskey and coffee

Abraxas coffee.
Taste of cocoa, not much else.
I pity the fool

The Star of the North
Makes me head for the mountains
Of some other beer.

Yulesmith: may be red.
But IPA, IPA,
It’s an IPA

Chomo-lungma: Dude.
Honey Nut Cheerios, but
With brown and not milk.

Mystic Mama says
Come here Big Daddy. Suck my
Hoppy Titties. What?

Hey Pumpkin Head!
Noel de Calabaza.
Says to pucker up!

Raspberry Tart says
Hey raspberry puss, you should
pucker up too, pal!

Haiku Remix One:
Mix Sump and Raspberry Tart
Chocofruitywow.

This is not Kosher.
Jewbelation Reborn is
Bottle of pulled pork.

Haiku Remix Two:
Mix Reborn and Radler for
A luau pig beer.

BCS Coffee:
more coffee than Sump, it’s in
My head, might be dead.

Firestone Walker
Fifteenth Anniversary.
Big name, but big taste.

Sigh. My true beer love.
King Henry, I wish I were
Heir to your fortune.

Parabola is
Chocolate milk in the form
Of a tasty beer.

Jolly Pumpkin Noel de Calabaza

He'Brew Jewbelation Reborn

Goose Island Bourbon County Brand Coffee Stout (2013)

Goose Island King Henry Barleywine (2012)

Firestone Walker Parabola Imperial Stout (2011)

Stiegl Grapefruit Radler

Perennial Sump Coffee Stout (2013)

New Glarus Raspberry Tart

Fin

We at Hoosier Beer Geek hope you've had a great holiday season. Cheers to more great beer in 2014!

KOTBR #151 | Comedy Night at Black Acre Brewing Company

Good evening ladies and germs!

So a teenager goes to his parents and says, “I want to be a brewer when I grow up.” His parents reply, “Sorry kid, you can’t have both.”

A drunk was in front of a judge. The judge says, "You've been brought here for drinking." The drunk says, "Okay, let's get started."

This is for Jim…

Why don’t Jewish mothers drink? Alcohol interferes with their suffering.

Okay, this one is for Mike…

What is the difference between Amy Winehouse and Captain Morgan? Captain Morgan comes alive when you add Coke!

Okay, I’m no Milton Berle and this is not the Catskills. But Indianapolis is not joking when it comes to good beer. And Black Acre Brewing Company (5632 E. Washington St., blackacrebrewing.com) is a seriously good neighborhood bar and brewery.

Speaking of jokes, we decided to bring back roundtable ratings. Sorta.

We tried to pick a Black Acre beer to review, but we were too busy drinking their variety of beers that we could not decide on one. So we rated a whole lot of them.

Jason:
Hop Pun Double IPA
Ahh, a beer in his natural habitat: Black Acre Brewery. So why don’t beers wear shoes? Because they have beer feet! What do you get when you pour beer in your mother’s shoes? A spanking! Hey everybody, Hop Puns are on the house! But be careful, we just had the roof re-tarred!
Rating: 5 wacka wacka wackas

Mike:
Mr. Caulfield Rye Wheat Ale
If you are Holden a pint of this beer, you will not find any phony qualities. Thankfully, you won’t have to wait for a world renowned author to die to order another one.
Rating: 4 new Salinger stories

Jim: 
Citra Pale Ale
Holy hop bomb Batman! The pale ale leaves a POW! in your mouth but, like a boomerang, you will be coming back for more. Same Black Acre time, Same Black Acre channel!
Rating: 4.5 Batarangs

Rye Stout
One drink of this beer and you will feel like you are riding in a Chrysler Cordoba, complete with soft Corinthian leather. One drink and it will forever be tattooed on your brain and taste buds. It is complex, not de plane! If you want to order one, then you certainly KHAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAN! Rating: 3.95 Ricardo Montalbans

Hop Pun Double IPA
Ooh! Ooh ooh! That was ver-ry impressive, Mister Black Acr-r-r-re!
Rating: 4.2 Horshacks

Gina:
Citra Pale Ale
You know, this would be funnier if it were Simcoe Pale Ale, but it’s not. It is Citra Pale Ale with its fruity and citrusy characteristics. But let’s be serious for a moment. Ever since Bob Barker left the air, the animal population has skyrocketed. Nobody is spaying or neutering their animals. When there are that many extra pets, it means only one thing: deeply discounted prices on Chinese food. Good for the Jews at Christmas; bad for cat and dog lovers. Unless they love the taste of cats and dogs.
Rating: 3.5 feral cats

Meg:
Nit Wit Belgian Witbier
You are in a bar.
I order a beer.
The bartender serves you a beer.
I drink the beer.
Rating: 4 d20's

Knock knock.
Who’s there?
Black Acre’s guest tap list.
Black Acre’s guest tap list who?
Black Acre’s guest tap list is not a joke, so there’s no punch line, son. They had Bloomington Brewing Company’s 10 Speed on tap. It is an American Pale Wheat Ale that many of us have been enjoying. A lot. So we decided to review it.

So we drank the beer. And enjoyed it. And forgot to write down notes. So the biggest joke of all is that we are a “beer” blog. But I digress…

Bloomington’s 10 Speed is better than any bike ridden by Cru Jones or Dave Stoller. It is listed as a specialty beer on their website. But hopefully they will upgrade it to the regular lineup because the subtle fruit notes and wheat base combination rivals any other hoppy wheat produced in the state.

No, that is not a joke.

If you happen upon a cask of 10 Speed on pineapple, drink it up. Every. Last. Drop.

Ratings:
Chris: 3.9 gear boxes
Gina: 4.25 sprockets
Meg: 3.75 sparkly vampires
Mike: 4.25 huevos rancheros
Jason: 4.25 whoopee cushions
Jim: 4.1 gong shows

KOTBR #149 | North of the Rodney Zone at Union Brewing Company

Jim wrote:

Most of us Knights of the Beer Roundtable have few reasons for venturing north of 86th Street. Almost all of us live south of 38th Street and find what we need for entertainment purposes in Center Township. We're regularly downtown, on Mass Ave, and in Fountain Square. We'll even head to south side haunts like Shallo's every once in a while. Broad Ripple is about as far north as we usually get.

So yes, we suffer from a bit of urban snobbery. But now, Union Brewing Company gives us a good reason to head north. Occupying a space in an inconspicuous Carmel strip mall on Range Line Road, this new brewery and taproom specializes in cask ales. That in itself is a novelty among central Indiana breweries and beer bars. For while places like the Broad Ripple Brewpub and MacNiven's normally have a cask offering ready on the hand pull, no one devotes every tap of their house beer to cask ales.

Union Brewing does, and they do it well. Upon arrival at the brewery on a busy Thursday night, we walked past the small brewhouse into Union's taproom, which was decorated with sort of a backcountry vibe in mind, and found four house offerings on Union's row of beer engines: Miami Weisse, a Berliner Weisse; Apollo's Space Flight, a double India Pale Ale; Honey Boo Boo Chil', a hoppy, sweet golden ale; and P.Y.T., a Black American Pale Ale.

P.Y.T. was quite roasty; it struck me as being very much like a moderately hoppy American porter. Apollo's Space Flight was an outstanding representation of the DIPA style, full of mango and grapefruit notes with a slightly sweet finish. Honey Boo Boo was a chameleon of a beer, marrying a sweetness that reminded me of creamed corn with a piney hop presence.

But the best of the four house beers for me was the Miami Weisse. Berliner Weisse is one of my favorite beer styles, and Union's was a superior version. Lightly tart and refreshing, Miami Weisse's excellent flavor was amplified by the fact that it was a cask beer, thus displaying a somewhat creamy mouthfeel that enhanced the tart flavor. I can think of few Berliner Weisses that I've enjoyed more.

Opening a craft brewery in Indiana these days is a challenging task. To stay afloat, new brewers need to distinguish themselves both in the quality and uniqueness of their beers. So far, Union Brewing has mastered both.

Megan wrote:

Add Union Brewing in Carmel to your list of breweries you must visit soon and often. It's a small, welcoming space and the beer is impressive. I tried three beers and I enjoyed them all.

First up was PYT, a Black APA (not IPA). It had the roasty toastiness I've come to love in this style of beer, and it blended well with the dose of citrusy hops.

Second was Miami Weisse, a Berliner Weisse that had a little funk/tartness to it. THIS WAS MY FAVORITE.

And lastly, the Apollo's Space Flight DIPA. Another very solid beer, the smoothness of the finish belied the big ol' ABV punch on this one.

Don't let the Hamilton County po-po keep you away from this gem!! But drink responsibly...they don't mess around up there.

Cheers!
Meg

Gina wrote:

Tucked away in an unassuming shopping center, you'll find a jewel in the form of Union Brewing Co. They are brewing on a small system right now and all of their beers are served from handpulls. They offer guest drafts (some on handpull as well) from other local favorites such as People's from Lafayette and BBC from Bloomington.

On our visit they had four beers on tap and we had to try them all, including the newly tapped PYT Black APA. To start, the Miami Weisse, a Berliner Weisse style beer that included some malts which made the beer come out a bit darker, or "extra tan" according to the board. While traditional Berliner Weisse style beers are very tart, this one was a little more toned down in the tartness. Very pleasant and equally as refreshing.

Second on the table was a golden ale named for a reality television figure. Honey Boo Boo Chil' is as mild as it is complex, if that makes any sense. Each drink seemed to offer a little bit different flavor. It's certainly easier to drink than to order.

By the time those samples were finished, the PYT had been tapped and it was on the table. While most breweries are making Black IPA's, to see a Black APA was a welcome sight. I tend to find Black IPA's pretty intense, almost as if the hop and the malt fight for attention. With the APA, it's still very flavorful, but also very balanced.

The final beer was the Apollo Space Flight DIPA. Everything good you would expect to come from a Double IPA came from this beer. A sweet and citrus balanced aroma, a hefty malt presence, and a clean finish. By this point I didn't expect anything less.

Overall, I am very impressed by what Union has been doing and I am happy to see another great Indiana brewery come on board. Also, my liver thanks them for serving half pints.

Union Brewing Company

622 S. Rangeline Rd., Suite Q

Carmel, Indiana 46032

317.564.4466

Website

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HBG KOTBR Reviews | Time to Bid Goodbye to Mug Ratings

For nearly six-and-a-half years, we as the Knights of the Beer Roundtable have been reviewing beers on this website. In fact, that was the initial raison d'être for the blog; we wanted to convene a few times a month, drink some beer, and share our thoughts about that beer with our readers.

Our beloved founder Chris Maples devised a rating system for the beers we reviewed: HBG's famously arbitrary mug rating system (and forgive us, by the way, for using "mugs" as our rating touchstone; we were young and a bit naive and didn't realize that a mug was not the proper glassware for many beers). A five-mug rating marked an outstanding beer. Conversely, a one-mug rating meant that the beer was a drain-pour candidate.

Over the years, we've recognized the limited utility of the mug rating system. We've called it a "mysterious animal" because we never had beer styles in mind when we assigned our ratings and because all of us have different palates with different preferences. And frankly, we believe that people probably don't get much value out of the mug ratings.

So we've decided to ditch the mug ratings. This doesn't mean that in the future, we won't tell you if we think a beer is worth trying or isn't up to snuff. But it does mean that we won't attach a number to the review. And we hope you'll still stick around to continue reading our reviews. Indeed, we've got some great stuff in the pipeline as we try to branch out and review beers from some breweries that we previously haven't given publicity.

We're certainly open to reconsidering the decision to get rid of the mug scores if our readers tell us that this is a bad idea. So tell us what you think. In the meantime, stay tuned for some roundtable posts in the near future.

Thanks!

The Knights of the Beer Roundtable

Jason, Gina, Jim, Rodney, Matt, Chris, Jake, Megan, and Kristin

KOTBR #148 | Stone Vertical Epic...Without 02.02.02

Eleven Stone Vertical Epics. Eleven beers brewed by one of this country's most esteemed breweries. Eleven different flavor profiles. Eleven different noses. Eleven different mouthfeels.

Someone had to drink them all side-by-side, in a row. Who was that someone?

The Knights of the Beer Roundtable.

For those who are unfamiliar with Stone's Vertical Epic series, each year beginning in 2002, Stone brewed this yearly release. The beer was made available one year, one month, and one day from the previous year's edition. Each beer was brewed according to a completely different recipe. So Stone's first Vertical Epic was released on 02-02-02, the second on 03-03-03, etc. The last Vertical Epic, 12-12-12, was released last year.

To our good fortune, Rod and Jess had cellared every Vertical Epic since 03-03-03, including a wine-barrel-aged version of the 11-11-11. They in their generosity invited the rest of the KOTBR to enjoy the series. The result? Well, I'd say that we displayed our diverse palates because each of us seemed to prefer different Vertical Epics. Here are thoughts from some of us on our three favorite Vertical Epics. We'll let Jason go first because he decided to display an artistic bent in his review.

Stone Vertical Epic 03-03-03 through 12-12-12 with an additional white wine barrel aged 11-11-11

Jason:

"Drinking a Vertical Stone"
By Dr. Gut and the Beer Geek Show
(To the tune of "On the Cover of the Rolling Stone" by Dr. Hook and the Medicine Show)

Well we are big beer drinkers and beer blog thinkers
And we drink everywhere we go
We write about flavors and we write about aroma
And anything else we know
We drink things that are rare and things that have flare
And we share all that we own
But we can’t share the one we can’t get our hands on:
02.02.02 Vertical Stone

Vertical Stone
     The 05.05.05 was like candy
Vertical Stone
     The dark Belgian was a dandy
Vertical Stone
     Gonna see my smilin' face
Drinkin’ on a Vertical Stone

We've got a funky beer that smells kinda queer
Aged inside a brewer’s gym shoes
We've got wet hopped quadruple IPA
With about a thousand IBUs
We have every kind that we can find
Priced so high we had to take out a loan
But no amount of cash will buy us a stash
Of 02.02.02 Vertical Stone

Vertical Stone
     The 03.03.03 was like gnarly
Vertical Stone
     Tasting like a wine of barley
Vertical Stone
     Gonna see my smilin' face
Drinkin’ on a Vertical Stone

We got a lot of little beer blogging groupies
Who follow every word we say
We got a genuine Jewish lawyer
He's teachin' us to say Oy Vey!
We’ve got Facebook friends, tweeps, and beer geeks
So we never have to drink alone
We keep drinking beer but we’ll never taste, I fear,
Of 02.02.02 Vertical Stone

Vertical Stone
     Could not get enough of eleven
Vertical Stone
     The Cinnamon and Peppers were like heaven
Vertical Stone
     Gonna see my smilin' face
Drinkin’ on a Vertical Stone

Kristin:

In no particular order....

08-08-08
I thought this beer was smooth...with a nice finish. A little hint of grapefruit made it interesting. And it had some funky yeast flavor going on, which I liked. I put in my notes that, "I would drink a pony of it."

10-10-10
I loved how interesting this beer was. The addition of chamomile gave it a great flavor...and the grapes left me with a wine taste. It was all over the place, but I was absolutely okay with that.

11-11-11
Aged in a white wine barrel...chili flavor was still there. I noted..."Oak, hot, sharp, yummy!" There you have it.

04-04-04 - spiced, sweet wheat with an accent of lime leaf and zest

05-05-05 - warm, spicy Belgian with notes of raisins and candi sugar

03-03-03 - Sweet, dark caramel malts with a touch of coriander at the finish

Megan:

My favorites in haiku:

03-03-03
Sweet, sweet candy smell
Peppery smooth on my tongue
Put more in my mouth

08-08-08
Super hoppy smell
Lemony-citrus goodness
Danger! Danger! Beer

11-11-11
Oh, pretty pink beer
Starts out quite sweet, tart finish
I will marry you

02-02-02
Why you no show up
You might have been my top pick
We shall never know

06-06-06 - Complex and interesting with notes of raisins, figs, fennel, black pepper, brown sugar, molasses and lime

07-07-07 - Belgian tripel with aromas of tangerine, grapefruit and lime followed by flavors of cardamom, lime and grapefruit

08-08-08 - Spruce and tripel yeast on the nose with a spicy body of lime, spruce, cinnamon and white pepper

Rodney:
07-07-07 - The grapefruit and lime flavors were preserved well in this beer, which were an interesting compliment to the spicy tripel yeast. Major overtones of cardamom where a nice compliment as well. Even though it has five years on it, this one evolved very nicely.

09-09-09 - Imperial stouts typically hold up well under age, and this was no exception. Chocolate and cinnamon notes were very present, and the smoked flavors actually seemed to grow with age. While I normally don't care much for anise, the hint of licorice complimented this one well.

11-11-11 (White Wine Barrel) - The standard 2011 Vertical Epic seemed to lose most of the chile flavor that I enjoyed in the fresh version after a year of age. The wine barrel version completely transformed this beer into something new. Pleasantly oaky, the cinnamon worked with the traces of white wine and created butterscotch flavors that were reminiscent of bourbon. Not at all what I would expect from the 11-11-11 Vertical Epic, this was practically a new beer.

09-09-09 - Imperial stout laced with vanilla, smoke, chocolate, cinnamon and a touch of anise

10-10-10 - Sweet, white grape juice and chamomile.  Tastes similar to the fresh version.

Jim:

04-04-04. I'm a sucker for wheat beers, so this one hit my palate just right. Sweet, peppery, citrusy, with a Hefeweizen character in the finish. I think I was the only one of the group who liked this one.

08-08-08. While we couldn't reach a consensus on which Vertical Epic was the best, I'm pretty sure that this one was liked by most of us. This generously-hopped tripel struck me as being similar in character to a hoppy American barleywine with its caramel and grapefruit notes. I wouldn't have guessed it to be a tripel at all in fact.

09-09-09. Like most craft beer aficionados, my trigger gets tripped by imperial stouts, and this one was no exception. Hoppy, unusually dry, smokey, with a slightly sweet finish.

11-11-11 - Big cinnamon aroma and flavor, sweet amber malts and a hint of smoke

12-12-12 - Very spicy with notes of allspice, clove, cinnamon and brown sugar

All Vertical Epics blended together into a very interesting experiment, surprisingly drinkable

KOTBR #147 | At the End of the World, a Beer Named after a Cat Named "Good Dog"

Jim:

Europe is home to some renowned brewing regions-- Bohemia, Flanders, and Bavaria to name a few. Switzerland, however, usually doesn't find a place on this list. That might change considering the beers that Brasserie des Franche-Montagnes is producing. More commonly known as BFM, the brewery is helmed by Jérôme Rebetez in the Jura region of Switzerland. Rebetez has a degree in wine-making, which in my experience is reflected in his beers.

BFM's flagship beer is Abbaye de Saint Bon-Chien, a unique Bière de Garde that is produced through a blend aged in oak barrels that were previously used to age a variety of wines and grappa. Bon-Chien is unique because it is sour, which is not typical of the Bière de Garde style. And it's one of the best sour beers I've ever had (I'm not alone in this thinking, by the way).

The beer is named after the brewery's late feline mascot Bon-Chien, who was much beloved by the brewers and the brewery's visitors. According to the brewery's website, he was "sanctified" upon his passing--hence the title "Saint" attached to his name. But "Bon-Chien" means "good dog" in French. I'm not sure how the kitty ended up with that name, but Good Dog it was.

If I'm not mistaken, BFM has been making Bon-Chien since 2006. I've wanted to review it since I first had it during our 100th roundtable at New Albanian's 2010 Gravity Head. That opportunity finally presented itself on December 20, when Brugge Brasserie tapped several high-gravity beers, including Bon-Chien's 2011 vintage, which is 11% ABV. Pouring slightly hazy and amber with no head, this beer's nose was a mix of oak, red wine, and sour cherries. The flavor was quite tart with a heavy sour cherry note, and the mouthfeel was thicker than one would expect from a sour beer. The tartness of the beer was supported by a pleasantly sweet finish. Other sour beer lovers might be put off by the sweetness of Bon-Chien, but for me, it's what pushes the beer into the realm of the extraordinary.

Bon-Chien is available in central Indiana (I see it at Kahn's, for example, every time I'm in there) and goes for around $35.00 for a 750ml bottle. I normally wouldn't drop that much cash for a bottle of beer, but Bon-Chien is well worth the investment. It ages well, as the bottle of 2006 Bon-Chien I opened up in November proved. Save some space in your beer closet/cellar for this beer. And if you're lucky, Brugge still has it on tap, though I wouldn't count on it. 5.00 Mugs.

Megan:

Wow. Fantastic sour (or, Bière de Garde?).The nose was very vinegary (I mean that in a good way), which made the sweet-tart cherry finish a pleasant surprise! 4.69 Mugs.

Gina:

Love it!

I was going to just say that, but I think this beer deserves more. I love how the sweet and sour flavors mingle together. I always know I like this beer when I see it, but somehow forget just how much until my first sip. 4.75 Mugs.

BFM Abbaye de Saint Bon-Chien (2011)

Jim: 5.00 Mugs | Megan: 4.69 Mugs | Gina: 4.75 Mugs

KOTBR Score: 4.81 Mugs

KOTBR #142: Two at La Margarita Fountain Square

Does this sound familiar: Mike, Gina, Jim, and I... Sitting at a bar in Fountain Square... Being (playfully) harassed by the bartender... Poring over a beer menu, trying to figure out what to review. If we were five years younger, 500 feet south, and there was a chihuahua humping the taps tower, it would be like the old days at Deano's Vino. Except Mexican. So La Margarita de Deaño?

We selected two draft beers that I had not had before. Victory Headwaters Pale has a nice collection of hops, is very clean and crisp with a thin mouthfeel and no lingering flavors or feel. I would order this again, especially when it is the beer special of the day. 3.75 Mugs.

Brooklyn Gold Standard Export is effervescent and light yellow with a sweet nose from the malts, a light mouthfeel and subtle flavors. It is fine but not anything I would search out. 2.71 Mugs.


At the risk of sounding like your grandpa, I'd like to bring up that there was a time before you could get good beer everywhere in Indianapolis. We started this site with the quest to find great beer among our goals, and back then we'd be happy to find a tap or two to work with.

Now better beer is everywhere. If you're eating at an Indianapolis restaurant that doesn't have a beer that makes you happy, leave, and never come back. A restaurant without any decent beer choices is willfully ignorant, and doesn't deserve your money.

Yet with the proliferation of better beer comes stagnation - you can count on the same 3 styles (cream ale/lighter beer, pale ale, something darker) pretty much everywhere. Don't get me wrong - I love our locals. I love pale ale. But variety is why we started drinking craft beer.

Give us variety!

Variety isn't easy. Variety takes knowledge. If you're already selling all the Sun King or Flat12 you can buy, why buy anything else?

Luckily there are folks that just love beer. Jon Carlos Rangel at La Margarita is one such individual. Despite being a fan of Mexican football, Rangel knows his stuff, and keeps a steady but varying supply of styles and breweries flowing through La Margarita's taps.

After my minor tirade, you might be surprised to learn that you're about to read a review of a pale ale. But it's not one you'll stumble across everywhere. Victory Headwaters Pale is a summer-weight, easy drinking pale that you could pound if you wanted to. I'm not advising pounding beer, but it's nice to have the option. It's a pale ale that has everything you're looking for, with a bitterness that bites the middle of the tongue and doesn't let go. The flavor lingers with a spicy sort of kick.

It's not the most balanced pale ale, but the bitterness isn't overwhelming. While hops can amplify spicy dishes, in this case these meld nicely with La Margarita's complimentary salsas. 3.75 mugs.

As proof of La Margarita's dedication to beer, our second selection was a bit more rare. Brooklyn's Gold Standard is from the New York brewery's Brewmaster's Reserve Series - a lager in the German Kellerbier style.

Beers in the Kellerbier style are generally not filtered, allowing the yeast to remain suspended in the beer. Gold Standard has a light front, bitter middle, lingering but light bitterness, and a finish on the dry side. To be honest, there's not a lot going on there.

But it was different. 2.79 mugs.

And now, a message from our sponsors...

Hey Parrotheads! Jimmy Buffett here. You probably weren't aware of this, but when I'm not busy peddling my music, books, and restaurants through various avenues that are edging us closer to the downfall of Western civilization, or making sure that the tunaburgers offered at my Cheeseburger in Paradise restaurants are not only dolphin safe but manatee safe, I like to enjoy a good beer or two.

So let me tell you about this little watering hole in Fountain Square called La Margarita. The name of the joint made it rather obvious to me that I needed to stop there during my last tour date in Indy. Not only did I find my lost shaker of salt at La Margarita, I found some great suds there as well. They have this tasty pale ale called Victory Headwaters. You know I'm a citrus expert because of my copious consumption of limes. Well, Victory Headwaters is loaded with citrus flavors, I think due to the hops, rounded out by a nice malty sweetness. I can't believe I'm gonna say this, but I urge you to chuck that Landshark Lager and take one of these puppies to the beach with you!

Now I ain't no Kraut, but I do enjoy a good German style beer from time-to-time. So that's where Brooklyn's Golden Standard Export Kellerbier comes in, which is also on tap at La Margarita. This baby is smooooooth, let me tell you. It's nice, light, and a little sweet, kind of like the royalty checks that still roll in every month from the sales of my book Tales from Margaritaville. So the next time you're relivin' the 'late 70s and early '80s on your catamaran in the Gulf of Mexico, you won't go wrong with a Brooklyn Golden Standard Export.

Folks, the next time you're in Indy, get on down to La Margarita. And don't forget to pick up a brand new copy of my second autobiography, A Pirate Looks at Fifty Shades of Grey.

Victory Headwaters Pale: 4.25 mugs.
Brooklyn Gold Standard Export Kellerbier: 3.60 mugs.

Beers are always better when shared with friends. Even more when soccer is on TV. Exponentially so when chips and salsa are involved. So, thanks to Euro 2012, Mike and I have been at La Margarita three times in the past week. The food is great, the tequila selection is amazing, and Jon always keeps a stellar craft beer list.

Let me talk about those chips and salsa for a minute. There is something about tortilla chips at a restaurant. Something about these warm and crispy chips can not be replicated at home. Maybe it shouldn't be. It seems like the whole basket is gone before we know it, which is easy to do with the THREE salsas provided. Because I am a huge wuss when it comes to spicy heat, I usually hoard the avocado loaded pico de gallo. Not to say the other two aren't good, but I can't say no to avocado.

Now, the beers.

Sometimes it is hard to give words to beers. Sometimes you are just sitting there, drinking and chatting and the next thing you know is that the beer is three quarters gone. You drank it without thinking about it, without processing what you tasted. I kind of love when that happens even though it makes it difficult to write about. Every beer doesn't have to be earth shattering. Victory Headwaters Pale was good, balanced, and obviously had a pleasant flavor. I'm more than OK with that. 4.3 Mugs.

Now, juxtapose that with the next beer, Brooklyn Gold Standard Export Kellerbier. I felt that I had to work for this one, dissect it, break it down by its components to figure out how the different flavors and textures mingle together. In the end, I liked it. There was a sweetness sandwiched between a herbal bitterness. Maybe I should have had the beers in reverse. 3.0 Mugs.

Final KOTBR Scores
Victory Headwaters Pale
Jason: 3.75 Mugs | Mike: 3.75 Mugs | Jim: 4.25 Mugs | Gina: 4.3 Mugs
KOTBR Score: 4.01 Mugs

Brooklyn Gold Standard Export Kellerbier
Jason: 2.71 Mugs | Mike: 2.79 Mugs | Jim: 3.6 Mugs | Gina: 3.0 Mugs
KOTBR Score: 3.02 Mugs