Almost Delicate

32/1000 Bison Brewing Farmhouse Ale
JB: Farmhouse is a Belgian style, I think. There’s a beer tasting coming up that goes over the different Belgian styles.
KM [tasting]: You’re right! I think it’s a sign of progress that I can taste that and say, “That’s Belgian Style!” And I like it more now that I’ve tasted a bunch of beers that I don’t like. Do you get a sense of the Lambic from that?
JB: It has a touch of sourness, but nowhere near. But yeah, you’re placing it on the spectrum.
KM: And now that I’ve learned that it progresses so far… Would you say this is a particularly good Farmhouse?
JB: I think it’s delicious! It has a clear identity but it’s not smacking you around.
KM: I’m interested to know what other beers they make. They did this very well!
33/1000 Weed Pale Ale
JB: Well, doesn’t taste like weed. Was that too obvious? I have no idea what the story behind the name is.
KM: It’s really mild.
JB: I wouldn’t say it’s mild. I think it’s on the bitter and hoppy side. It’s sticking to the roof of my mouth.
KM: [hesitates]
JB: We don’t have to agree.
KM: Yeah, more on the aftertaste though, more than drinking it.
JB: I don’t know. This beer?
KM: I find it underwhelming.
JB: That is what I was trying to express. I don’t need to be whelmed by every beer, to like it.
KM: And I’m not disappointed by it…
JB: I would certainly try another beer from the brewery.
34/1000 Stone Brewing 11th Anniversary
JB: It’s a “dark IPA?” What is that! I have never heard of that and I’m very excited.
KM: It’s like it’s an evil IPA.
JB: Chewy. Sort of sweet. IPA, though?
KM: It’s more like some of those porters that we were drinking.
JB: What makes them call this an IPA?
KM: Maybe it’s got that IPA bitterness and hoppiness, but the darkness is masking it. What makes a beer dark?
JB: I really don’t know. This is something we should learn. Is it malt-related?
KM: Is it process-related? Belgians are always kind of the same color, that murky golden color.
JB: All that aside, I think this tastes great.
KM: I like this more than most IPAs, but it’s not much like an IPA. And I don’t generally like IPAs.
JB: You shouldn’t admit that.
KM: I don’t like them, “yet.” I’m learning to like them.
JB: Man, I want to know more about this beer.
KM: Mmm. It burps like an IPA. You don’t see that on the beer web sites, how they burp.
JB: Way easier to rate than color!
KM: And it’s a natural part of beer drinking!
35/1000 Alameda IPA
JB: I pronounce this, a lovely and mild IPA. Almost delicate. For an IPA.
KM: It doesn’t seem like an especially remarkable IPA. But it’s good. What’s the deal with Alameda?
JB: They’re local.
KM: What’s the McMenamin’s IPA? This reminds me of that. It’s like a less sticky Hammerhead. There are IPAs that are very interesting but maybe hard to drink, and those that are more like a session beer, but it’s weird to find one that’s right in the middle. “Yeah, that’s an IPA.” This project really makes you question beer creation. Why create a middle-ground IPA?
JB: We should email them. “Uh, what’s the deal with your IPA?”
KM: I can’t really determine how to judge it if I don’t know what they were aiming for.
Just 965 more to go!