Advent Beer 8: Hubertus Festbock (+ Wings of War!)

A bock is a strong, seasonal lager from Germany or Austria, often associated with special occasions and religious festivals, and is the kind of beer that monks would sometimes sustain themselves with while fasting. There are a number of varieties, including eisbocks, doppelbocks and festbocks.

At 7.5% abv, if you are looking for a beer to party with, you may be on the right track with this Hubertus Festbock from Austria, but don't blame me if you don't like where that train ends up. This is a very smooth beer,with very little bitterness, but no cloying sweetness due to the higher alcohol content either. The aroma is very lager-like, but the flavour and mouthfeel more like an ale.

The Holsten Festbock has been in my batting order in recent months, but I couldn't tell you if it is a better or worse example of the style than Hubertus; if I come across the latter outside of the advent calendar, I may have to run some sort of Pepsi challenge...

Best of all, Mike T. also has the advent calendar, so he brought his over so we could share a Day 8 toast before imbibing. He also brought the WWII board game Wings of War, which he has been trying to get played for almost a year.

Combining elements of board, card and miniatures games, Wings of War made a fantastic diversion while we waited for the Festbocks to chill. My Messerschmitt 109 and Japanese Reisen (better known to most of us as a Zero), faced off against Mike's Grumman Wildcat and Supermarine Spitfire, which just happens to be his favourite warplane.

 

The placement of cards on the table in relation to your aircraft's base determine your position and firing arc, and cups of counters allocate the damage. In the basic version we played, the special effects like sticking rudders, smoke and flames or injured pilots, were left out, with the sole exception of the explosion counter (pictured above), which took Mike's beloved Spitfire out early on. He dispatched my Messerschmitt shortly after, but was unable to out-turn my Zero, so my damaged craft was able to eke out a victory, despite almost colliding with him at one point.

Like Robo Rally, you plot your moves ahead of time, and it can be possible to 'zig when you should have zagged' to an end that is either tragic or comic depending on your perspective at the moment.

I'm not sure if the advanced rules, which comprehensively covers not only damage effects but also altitude, ground attacks and a campaign system, will have the elegance and flow of the basic version, but I am certainly willing to try it to find out.

Every beer tastes better with friends, and I am grateful that Mike was able to come over during a season which can get ridiculously busy, and share a neat beer and even neater game!

Posted with Blogsy

Advent Beer 7: Ratsherrn Freistadter

It is very probable that this example of a German vollbier (or 'full beer'), is wasted on my undiscerning palate. My tastes tend more towards ales than lagers, for the most part, so while Freistadter is representative of a very decent lager, it isn't something I would go out of my way for.

It's a very decent lager, probably a bit smoother than your more common varieties (it seems that it is all too easy to produce a bad lager; more so than ales), and the intrinsic bitterness does make it very refreshing. I think my mistake was having it without some form of sausage, preferably a currywurst, but at least I had the presence of mind to put it in the proper receptacle:

Thanks to Island Mike for lugging this mug back from der Vaterland for me; danke schoen, mein bruder!

Posted with Blogsy

Advent Beer 6: Mac Queen's Nessie

I'm not sure where the name Mac Queen comes into this particular brew, being as it is brewed in Austria. Nessie is described on the label as a "whisky malt red beer", and since I like all those things individually, it is hardly surprising I like them together in Nessie. Perhaps Mac Queen is the name of the particular highland whiskey malts they used in brewing it, who knows?

 

It doesn't have a strong scotch flavour the way a barrel aged beer like Innis & Gun or Glen Sherbrooke does, and the abv is a more moderate 5%, but you can definitely discern the relationship. Something in the scent of the malts maybe, or the smoothness of the mouthfeel? I don't know if i would characterize the aftertaste as 'smoky' the way the label does, but it definitely puts me in mind to drink it next to a fireplace. Nessie tastes more like a beer meant to accompany or follow a glass of scotch, as opposed to replacing it.

 

Posted with Blogsy

Advent Beer 5: Golser Weissbier

Today's offering is a German Weissbier, or wheat beer. Generally speaking, I like wheat beers, from Big Rock's Grasshopper to Granville Island's Hefeweizen, and even the occasional Hoegaarden, if I want to tart things up with a little coriander and such.

 

Golser's Weissbier has no such additives or additional flavours; look at how simple the ingredient listing is. It is a cloudy, smooth, somewhat tart wheat ale, which did a wonderful job of washing down this evening's shepherd's pie. To be quite honest, the 'premium wheat' and 'fine yeast' is probably wasted on me, but it's still a better use for wheat than baking it into a loaf of something or other.

More importantly though, I can now reveal the first five selections from the DIY Advent Beer Calendar Shari put together for Dave.

I've had the middle three of these, and can say without reservation or fear of contradiction that the Winter Treacle Porter from Innis &Gunn is MAGnificent. I will also put Alley Kat's Three Bears Oatmeal Stout up against any other competitors in that style, including the medal winner from St. Ambroise in Quebec. I have yet to try the Autumn Wheat Lager, but one is chilling in the fridge, waiting for an opportune moment, preferably on a weekend.

Posted with Blogsy

Advent Beer 4: Dude Oat Soda

Today's beer, Dude Oat Soda is an 'almost double India Pale Ale', from a Swiss brewer (Bad Attitude), who actually makes their beer in Ticino, Italy, using American hops. A veritable United Nations of beer, especially when it gets sold in Canada!

I appreciate IPAs, but I wouldn't call myself a fan. Besides, the bitterness of those extra hops seems more like an accompaniment to a hot summer day than a cold winter evening. Still, a very refreshing drink, with tight citrus notes layered on top of the hoppiness.

And obviously, most references to The Big Lebowski are greatly appreciated, even when they are in Italian.

 

Posted with Blogsy

Advent Beer 3: Nood & Deugd

Despite the fact that they share a border with Belgium, I can't name a single Dutch beer I am a fan of. Maybe it was getting off to a bad start with Heineken, maybe it's because I tend towards the local stuff in a pinch, I don't know. Probably it was trying to wrap my head around the idea that some people drink Grolsch on purpose. For whatever reason, when I saw that today's advent beer, Nood & Deugd, originated from Holland, I had a bit of trepidation. Turns out I needn't have worried.

I was mollified right off the start, when the beer poured out a dark brown, almost black colour, with a small head of beige foam that quickly dissipated. Being an ale fan by nature, this pleased me, as did the fact that whatever else, Nood & Deugd was very unlikely to be a skunky lager (cough, Grolsch, cough).

It turns out that I was trying a schwarzbier, and it wasn't an ale after all, but a dark lager. Another rich and satisfying evening drink, with the bitterness offset by hints of chocolate and coffee, not unlike many porters and stouts.

Furthermore, Nood & Deugd turns out to have been a happy accident that resulted when too many and the wrong malts were added to a brew intended to make a lighter Bohemian Lager. Thus the name, which is Dutch for 'Necessity and Virtue'.

In addition to being a delightful seasonal surprise, the Craft Beer Advent Calendar is batting three for three, as all of the offerings are beers I would like to try again. Which I am certain is part of the intent!

Posted with Blogsy

Advent Beer 2: Bise Noire

Tonight's advent beer is a black ale from France's Trois Dames called Bise Noire (Black Kiss). Named after a bitter north wind, Bise Noire is a 7.2% abv double malt beer, extremely dark in colour and just a little sweet due to the higher than average alcohol content. Somewhat bready, a little rich, with maybe a hint of caramelization. Since I sampled mine immediately after coming in from barbecuing at about -16 degrees, a rich, dark ale was just what the doctor ordered, and it seemed to go well with the steaks I had grilled. A little bit of sediment at the bottom of the glass is a reminder of the somewhat humble origins of craft beers like this, and a far cry from the double-pasteurized, triple-filtered, better-make-it-extra-cold-so-you-don't-accidentally-taste-it sort of thing you often get from larger producers.

And yes, the label, which shows someone bundled up against the cold while dragging a sled behind them, resonates pretty well with me too.

Posted with Blogsy