Martson's Pedigree

I, like most Americans, am convinced that bigger is better, and this continues on into my beer tastes. I cut my teeth on Double IPAs, Russian Imperial Stouts and Belgian Triples, and consequently consider anything under, say, 8% ABV to be fairly weak. Now this, like everything else, has benefits and detriments; the best benefit is that I can’t stand American light lagers (something about no taste and not much alcohol isn’t appealing), and the worst detriment is that I missed the whole session beer scene.

Session beers are a British tradition that has evolved due to pressure from several directions. First, beer in England is taxed by alcohol content, which means that a pint of low alcohol beer will be significantly cheaper than a pint of high gravity ale. A second reason is British culture in general, and the drinking culture in particular. In England, it is (or at least was) common to have a beer with lunch, and to spend the evening in the pub consuming six or more pints of beer. This doesn’t end quite as well with Barleywines, as the flavor will blow your palette and the alcohol will knock you back in the seat, so pubs typically keep bitters (pale ales) and milds (draft brown ale) on tap. These beers typically range from 2 to 5% ABV, and brewers would frequently produce multiple bitters of different alcohol contents. Bitters are, contrary to their name, not especially bitter. Bitters are actually pale ales, and while they definitely have bitter elements, they are not in the same realm as an IPA; many American Pale Ales are far more bitter, closer to a classic English IPA.

The beer that I picked out for this week is Marston’s Pedigree, a bitter. Marston’s Brewery opened in 1834 in Burton upon Trent, a town particularly famous for its beers due to the excellent local water. The company has since merged with others, eventually forming Marston’s plc which now operates five breweries. The company produces a large number of beers under at least six different trade names, but Pedigree is their flagship bitter, and is their only beer still brewed on the Burton Union system. The Union system utilizes an array of interconnected oak kegs as primary fermenters, allowing excess yeast foam to be separated out and beer to circulate between the casks. This produces a remarkably consistent product, although with modern breweries and sanitation the Union system has largely fallen by the wayside.

The beer poured a light, clear copper color with nice golden highlights. Barely any head formed, but the pure white lacing from it was quite persistent; this is an interesting counterpoint to American pale ales, which typically form a fair bit of head which dissipates quickly. The most noticeable aroma was a lemon citrus nose, although there was also some sweet and tart contrasting scents which likely stem from the Goldings hops and the fermentation respectively.

The body was initially moderately heavy, but this quickly thinned out as the beer warmed. The carbonation was quite low, which contributed to the low head formation. Both of these are characteristic of the style, as is the thinner body at warmer temperatures; this style is typically served at cellar temperatures instead of the more frigid temperature of my room this time of year, which is probably why I initially noticed a thicker body. The dominant taste was a moderate bitterness, although I didn’t notice any actual hop flavor, which was layered onto of a solid malt backbone with both some sweetness and faint caramel notes. Overall, this beer was quite restrained and balanced, although the bitterness tended to edge out the malt flavors in the aftertaste.

This was an excellent session beer, and while I noted the bitterness it was nowhere near the level of an IPA. To me this was a good thing, as I could easily kick back and drink a couple of pints of this beer over the course of the evening. I recommend giving this beer a try if you want to taste something with a historic flavor, yet a restrained alcohol content.

Size: 500 mL

Price: $5.95

ABV: 5%

Look: 4/5

Smell: 4/5

Taste: 4/5

Mouthfeel: 4/5

Guinness Foreign Extra Stout

This week as I was browsing the shelves, I decided to grab a bottle of Guiness Foreign Extra Stout. Now, if you are reading this column you have probably either tried, or at least heard of Guinness. This particular beer, however, is a new offering on this side of the Atlantic, and brewed to a different style than what you normally think of as Guinness.

Guinness is one of the most famous beer brands in the world, enjoying immense popularity with its Guinness Draught and Extra Stout brands. The brand actually dates back to 1759 when Arthur Guinness leased the St. James’s Gate Brewery in Dublin, Ireland for 9,000 years. The complex now covers over 60 acres, and is the largest brewer of stouts in the world. The company has continued to grow as well, merging with Grand Metropolitan plc in 1997 to form Diageo plc. Diageo has also acquired many brands of liquor such as Smirnoff, Johnnie Walker, José Cuervo and Baileys, becoming the world’s largest producer of spirits in addition to being a major player in the beer market.

Breweries in the United Kingdom have long exported their beer around the world, with several distinct styles being created as a result. The most famous of these, at least in America, is the India Pale Ale, but Guinness has also produced its Foreign Extra Stout since 1801. Importation of this Guinness variety into the US was started in 1817, but was stopped by prohibition in 1920, and has only been restarted in 2010.

Foreign Extra Stouts typically have a higher alcohol and hop content to help preserve them during shipping (7.5% vs the typical 5% of Guinness in America ), but also come in two distinct varieties; Export Type and Tropical Type. Export type typically are higher gravity (more sugar to start, hence more alcohol) versions of Sweet or Dry Stouts, while the Tropical Type is typically more fruity. Some examples, including the Guinness Foreign Extra Stout, are dosed with Brettanomyces, which will sour the beer over time. This is important, since while it helps to keep the beer from spoiling, it will also change the flavor profile over time. The beer is also brewed differently for different markets, which you may run across if you travel abroad.

Guinness recommends serving this beer in a Guinness-brand goblet or drinking straight from a properly chilled bottle. Pint glasses also work equally well, although personally I’d grab a tulip, snifter or wine glass to allow for a proper appreciation of the complex aroma. I’d also recommend having some dark chocolate or a good, U.K. cheese on hand; personal favorites of mine are Collier’s welsh cheddar, Dubliner or Stilton (careful, the last is a strong blue). Or just pair it with some red meat, as the strength of this beer will overpower many lighter foods.

The beer pours a jet black, so dark that I cannot tell if it is cloudy or not. This is typical with Foreign Extra Stouts, and Stouts in general, and the clarity is probably excellent anyway as this is a mass production beer, which are generally filtered. The head is quite large and a light brownish tan head, like coffee with a lot of creamer in it, and the texture is quite fine and pillowy. The head is very long lived and the lacing quite good, reminiscent more of a nice Belgian than the typical Dry Stout. The aroma is moderately strong and dominated by a roasted grain aroma, but with distinct chocolate and fruit notes, such as orange and plum. The chocolate and fruit notes actually blend very nicely together, giving an effect not unlike that of a chocolate orange. The body is surprising thick for a stout, much more so than in standard Guinness Draught; Guinness Draught gets its creamy texture mainly from the use of nitrogen instead of carbon dioxide, which produces finer bubbles. The Extra Stout, on the other hand, appears to derive much of its body from longer chain sugars which were left over after the mashing process. The carbonation has a sparkly start, which quickly subsides to a fairly low level that enhances the already creamy mouthfeel. The taste is quite bitter, which I did not expect given the lack of hop aroma, with the dominant flavor being a roasted maltiness which is backed up by traces of fruit. The finish on this beer is a surprisingly chocolaty one, with hints of coffee as well, while lacking any of the acrid aftertaste I usually associate with Guinness.

This was a very good beer, far better than Guinness Draught in my opinion, and it is much more reasonably priced than many of the other beers I’ve reviewed recently. The bottle I tasted had been in my refrigerator for about two months when I drank it, which gave the Brettanomyces time to work on the beer, but as this is fairly dry to begin with it did not gain a very sour character. I recommend picking up a four pack of this if you get the chance, and drink one a month so that you can see how it changes over time.

Size: 11.2 oz

Price: $2.95

ABV: 7.5%

Look: 4.5/5

Smell: 5/5

Taste: 4.5/5

Mouthfeel: 4.75/5

Hop Rod Rye - Bear Republic Brewing Company

This week I grabbed Bear Republic’s Hop Rod Rye. This beer is a twist on the traditional beer styles, taking the beloved India Pale Ale and substituting rye for some of the barley malt. This typically has the result of adding some spiciness to the beer, which adds an interesting touch to hoppy beers like American Reds and Ambers.

Bear Republic started as a brewpub in Healdsburg, California, and has since opened a larger production brewery in nearby Cloverdale. The brewmaster Richard Norgrove was awarded Brewer of the Year at the 2006 Great America Beer Festival, and has made a name for himself producing rye and hoppy beers. The Hop Rod Rye itself has quite a history, winning gold medals at the 2003 and 2009 California State Fairs and the 2002 Chicago Real Ale Festival.

IPAs are usually served in a regular mug or pint glass, due to their strong aroma, and this beer is no exception in that category. Due to its bitterness, this beer will pair well with stronger cheeses like cheddars and blues, and would work well with pepper jack as well. As for a main dish, a good pairing would be white meats such as poultry and fish. My personal favorite to pair with this, however, is a nice, spicy curry. The bitterness in these beers is usually strong enough to cut through the spices in a curry, and there is no big, roasted malt character to clash with the rest of the dish like a Russian Imperial Stout would.

The beer poured a clear amber with a reddish gold hue. A finger of off-white, almost tan head quickly formed, but the texture was very fine, much more like a good Belgian than I expected. The aroma was quite strong, and was dominated by a piney hop scent with citrus notes and no malt aroma. The aroma dissipated surprisingly quickly, even more so than in other IPAs. The mouthfeel was surprisingly smooth and moderate bodied, and the carbonation, while quite high, was creamy, almost like nitrogen. The taste was also smooth and almost balanced at first, but the bitterness with hints of citrus just kept growing. This beer was surprisingly bitter, even for an IPA, and the bitterness just kept growing through the aftertaste. There was some sweetness left from the malt, but it did very little to offset the bitterness, and any contribution from the rye was also overshadowed by the hops.

This beer was pretty good, and surprisingly smooth, but the level of bitterness was quite high. I would not recommend trying this beer unless you know you like other IPAs. If you haven’t tried an IPA before, I’d recommend Green Flash IPA instead, as that IPA has more floral notes to balance the bitterness.

Size: 12 oz

Price: $2.70

ABV: 8%

Look: 4/5

Smell: 3/5

Taste: 3.5/5

Consecration - Russian River Brewing Company

As I relaxed over Christmas break, I had the opportunity to try the third beer in the series from Russian River Brewing Company, Consecration. The first beer I tried was Damnation, which was a golden strong ale, and the second was a brown ale barrel aged in Pinot Noir oak barrels with sour cherries named Supplication. Consecration is a dark strong ale that has been aged in cabernet sauvignon barrels with black currents.

Russian River Brewing Company was started in 1997 by Korbel Champagne Cellars, who then sold the business to the head brewer, Vinnie Cilurzo, in 2002. Vinnie has since expanded both the brewery and his distribution region, making a name for himself with extreme IPAs and sour Belgian-inspired beers like the Supplication I reviewed last term. Like Supplication, Consecration is a sour beer, which means it was inoculated with a souring agent. Russian River actually uses four different souring agents in their beer. First is the fruit, currents in Consecration and cherries in Supplication. After the beer has finished its fermentation with Saccharomyces it is dosed with Brettanomyces (another form of yeast) and Pediococcus and Lactobacillus (two forms of bacteria), all of which digest sugars that Saccharomyces cannot to produce lactic acid and other sour tasting compounds.

Consecration poured a clear, golden amber with a beautiful reddish hue. The clarity was excellent, although care must be taken when pouring any bottle conditioned beer so as not to disturb the yeast sediment on the bottom (unless it is a hefe, as these beers are meant to be consumed with a heavy yeast suspension); this sediment tastes nasty, and ruins the last glass of beer. The head was tan and fairly thin, but of a very fine texture and left beautiful lacing on the glass. The aroma was sweet, sour, and slightly fruity, but the most distinct scent was actually of vanilla, almost like a bourbon; overall the scent was very complex. The carbonation was smooth, with some sparkling highlights that tickled a bit. This was not nearly the sparkly carbonation I’ve experienced with many other beers, which can be pretty harsh, and paired very well with the thick, full body. The taste was quite sour and acidic, while maintaining some sweetness, but the overall balance was quite good, and the sourness was not nearly at the level of the Supplication.

This was actually one of the best beers I have ever had, right next to Supplication, and I can’t recommend it enough. Both beers are sour beers, however, and not particularly cheap; If you are interested in trying something new, go for it, but if you like your Natural Ice, buy a case of that instead and be happy.

Size: 375 mL

Price: $17.50

ABV: 10.0%

Look: 5/5

Smell: 5/5

Taste: 5/5

Mouthfeel: 5/5