Before I start the diary, a list of five, as has become tradition.
Five favorite Hoosier Beer Geeks (in order)1) Chris - doesn't mind if you throw up in his car, former guitarist for Alanis Morissette.
2) Jim - watches soccer, great dancer.
3) Kelly - apparently knows everyone, can perform emergency dental work.
4) Jason - helpful to strangers, quotes Shakespeare regularly.
5) Gina - stalks me, part robot.
On to the beer...
2 September 07 Location: Home
Two Brothers Brewing Co. Domaine DuPage French Style Country Ale (bottle labeled "Best by 8/15/04") - A trip to PartiPak last night brought home a mixed 6 pack featuring 4 beers I've never had before. This is one of the four. Really nice bottle - golds and maroons, a classy presentation. If I had seen the "best by" marking, I probably wouldn't have made this purchase, but nevertheless... pours extremely fizzy in the glass, more like a 7 Up than a beer. Thick pillowy head on top of a cloudy, dark pumpkin-colored body. A while back I had a beer at Brugge called "the sour" - this is the closest thing I've had to that beer. But this isn't nearly as good. Sour dominates both the nose and taste, but not in a pleasant, sour candy sort of way... just sort of a sour apple taste - I drank half and gave Gina the rest.
11 September 07 Location: HomeStone Pale Ale - I've decided to only drink beers I've heard
Jeffery T talk about - thus, Stone Pale Ale. Dark golden color, with a thin lacing. Light, slightly hoppy nose. Smooth, surprising taste - dry, earthy popcorn, with just a tiny kick of a hop aftertaste. Taste kinda stays with you. Pretty mild. Not bad, but wouldn't be my first choice - though my pale ale experience is pretty limited.
15 September 07 Location: My childhood home, Trenton, ILBell's Octoberfest - Left over from our tasting at Big Car. 5.8% ABV, pours like a soda with a head that quickly settles - this beer looks quite active and bubbly, with a dark copper color. A sweet yeasty, bready nose that follows into the taste. Then the alcohol notes come out - this tastes like a stronger beer than it is. I don't think it's very good, but maybe I should have let it chill a bit longer.
20 September 07 Location: Brugge Brasserie, IndianapolisThe Black - To be honest, every time I visit Brugge I worry that the beer won't be as good as I remember it. The Black is (obviously enough) black and opaque in color, with a tiny bubbly and pillowy head. At first taste, this isn't the beer I remember. Heavily alkaline - a penny-like taste that overpowers everything else. But the beer was served colder than in my previous experiences, so I gave it a minute to warm up. In
earlier reviews of the black my fellow beer geeks noted chocolate, coffee, and nuts - but I don't get that at all. I think the beer has a sweet, slightly plum-like nose and taste - with none of the stout-like characteristics found in earlier reviews. The plum hints might make you think of other Belgian-style beers, but this isn't an overpowering fruit taste like some of those other beers - the beer is perfectly mild and endlessly drinkable. But it also packs more punch than any other beer I can think of - after just one glass the walk to the restroom becomes slightly more entertaining than it should be. I still don't know the ABV of this beer, but I suspect it's over 10.
Ratebeer.com says 7% - I don't buy that at all. Besides, ratebeer.com give the black a 69/100 score, which is a travesty.
I have to wonder if there's some inconsistency in the different batches of the beer - the alkaline taste that I got off the top wasn't something I remember from before, and this beer was really my introduction to good beer back before I was writing for Hoosier Beer Geek. I just can't imagine liking it so much back then with this much metallic taste.
Despite the inconsistency, drinking this beer is always a rewarding experience - I just wonder which version we're going to get once it's bottled. Despite my much larger beer background, the black is still a favorite.
Ommegang Hennepin - This is the first time I've had someone else's beer from the tap at Brugge - I'd imagine they're running a bit low on the home-grown stuff while they get things in line at the brewery in Terre Haute.
Ommegang is a New York brewery brewing Belgian style beers, so the beer fits Brugge's concept pretty well. Hennepin has a cloudy lemon color, with a thin flat head. A sweet and mild fruit nose preceeds a full but not heavy mouthfeel. I wrote the word "mild" three times in my notes - it's just a refreshingly pleasant and agreeable beer; a perfect summertime drink. It's almost hefe-like in its drinkability and taste - fruity, but not overpoweringly so, and minus the banana hints of a typical hefeweizen. Hennepin calls this a "farmhouse saison" - and I don't have enough saison experience to compare this to anything else. But I do know it's pretty fantastic stuff.
On Saturday, September 28th, 2013, the inaugural CANvitational will enlighten patrons to sample craft beer from award winning breweries from across the USA, enjoy local Indy eats provided by food trucks and music (DJ Helicon and DJ Action Jackson), in an urban downtown atmosphere.
