Beer Review 63: Jolly Pumpkin Biere de Mars

Jolly Pumpkin Brewery as you well know by now is one of my favorite breweries out there. They fine people over in Dexter, Michigan hardly ever produce a bad beer. Tonight, Biere de Mars is no exception, this might be along with La Roja my favorite beer they release each year. This beer is brewed in the French style stock ale. Biere de Mars is aged in oak barrels and brewed using two different yeast strains giving this beer a unique and complex profile. Furthermore, Biere de Mars is a seasonal beer released in March, so keep your eyes open and pick up a few; some to drink now others to lay down. Moreover, this brew isn't pricey at all for the quantity and quality you get. At $13.99 a bottle for a 750 ml, I believe you are getting a steal when it comes to barrel aged sour beer. Biere de Mars is absolutely drinkable, bottled at a 7% abv this beer is smooth and refreshing. Like all Jolly Pumpkin beer's make sure to enjoy them in the proper glass and with a proper serving size. With Biere de Mars its best to use either a tulip or goblet style glass, both of which usually suffice for a 9.4 oz serving size. This is a very good beer, one that you should consider buy plenty off if you are a sour beer fan and also if you are one of those who is just starting to get into the style. Biere de Mars is a quality beer, enjoy!

Color: Brownish red hues for this beer.... glows differently from every angle. A hazy beer, not plenty of light getting through this one. A nickle sized head forms after the pour of the off white shade. Some minor soapy lacing is left on the glass as you drink the beer down.

Nose: Big funky smells come from this beer. Vinegar comes up at the forefront followed by some wicked barnyard scents. Dried pit fruit floats around in the glass and the smell of apples and cranberries swim in the background.

Palate: Interesting! mellow sourness/tart. Funky and fruity with a medium body feel. The drinkability is awesome.... the carbonation is spot on and the abv is well masked. As the beer warms it gets a tad more complex,but a bit harder to drink, but not really a bad thing.

Finish: Dry and tart with a lingering texture of sour fruit and mild vinegar. I really enjoyed this brew. I wish it was available a lot more especially in California. JP another solid brew!

Rating: 94 out of 100

Scotch Review 5: Balvenie 15 year

I love me some Scotch, especially as the colder evenings begin to show their gloomy faces. For a nice fall night I prefer a Speyside Scotch; reason being is that they don't pack as much smoke and warmth like Islay whiskey's or even of those from the Highland region. That is why Balvenie 15 year is the perfect whiskey for those Autumn nights when you want a night cap without that heavy warmth from other Scotch's. Balvenie 15 drinks very smooth and with nice sweet characteristics, especially with the abv at bottling being a robust 47.8%. Furthermore, this whiskey is priced wonderfully for the quality you get and the amount. At $59.99 a 750 ml bottle i feel this is a fair price for the this product. Moreover, Balvenie 15 is a small batch Scotch as they only bottle 350 bottles a cask and the fine folks at the distillery take time to hand number each bottle. Also, like all fine single malt Scotch's it is best to drink them out of a proper glass... a Glenncarin glass like the one pictured would be it. This whiskey is truly an art form and a true example of the speyside style. So if you like you Scotch with hints of sweetness, mild warmth and plenty of complexity on the palate grab a bottle of this at your local store and enjoy.

Color: A light honey/straw. Leaves behind a nice amount of legs on the glass due to the high abv.

Nose: Sublime! Apples, oak, toffee and sweet spices. Hint of vanilla and caramel butthey just float around in the background. Also some faint aromas of pit fruit and ceder.

Palate: This is so drinkable. Smooth and the warmth of this whiskey is just like sipping a great tea. Very balanced on the tongue as well.... it allows for all the complexities to shine. First you get the spices followed by the fruit, especially the apples. The oak later appears and with it comes the vanilla and caramel flavors.

Finish: A light warmness, smooth, but it looses some body here, but nothing to harm the overall taste of this Scotch.

Rating: 94 out of 100

Beer Review 62: Three Floyds Dark Lord 2011

When It comes to big stouts there are a few big hitters out there, and Three Floyd's Dark Lord is one of them. This big Russian imperial stout come out once a year and its only sold at the brewery, and to show you how big this beer release is I will tell you that there is a whole day in April in Munster Indiana dedicated to this beer, and appropriately its called "Dark Lord Day." This stout my friends is no joke, bottled at a robust 15% abv in 22 oz bottles sealed in wax, this beer is not for the faint of heart. Dark Lord drinks thick and heavy, but with lots of delicious complexity making this stout a delight. Furthermore, its best to to share your bottle of Dark Lord, not only because a bomber of this will knock you into next week, but also because it happens to be a rare beer and not most people get to try such a treat. Another reason to share your bottle is because this beer also happens to be expensive, not only do you have to buy tickets for 10 dollars to attend Dark Lord Day at the brewery, but also the cost of the bottle is 15 dollars, so essentially you are paying 25 bucks for this stout. Moreover, enjoy your Dark Lord in moderation; the proper serving size for this brew is about 8.4 oz poured into either a snifter or nonic pint. I prefer to drink Dark Lord as a late night beer when its cool out after dinner. This stout makes a great pairing with chocolaty desserts or a cheese fondue, but also will pair nicely with a cigar of the maduro variety. Also, Dark Lord makes a great beer to cellar, so putting this away in a dark place for a few months to a few years will help this beer mellow out a bit.

Color: Black... black as motor oil. A nice one finger khaki head forms on top of this beer. Leaves behind minimal lacing on the glass, but the darkness of this brew does stain the glass.

Nose: Boom! Immense roasted malts and bitter coffee. Vanilla, molasses, syrup, and raisin also appear as this beer warms. I can see why people say they smell soy sauce in this beer, but to me its quite faint and not a real factor in this beer.

Palate: Thick, yet drinkable because the carbonation is spot on. The tongue gets bathed in sweet waves of vanilla, chocolate, syrup, and molasses. Following the sweetness are palate crushing waves of intense bitter coffee and a gentle hop profile. This beer is well layered and smooth despite a tingly warmth from the abv.

Finish: Intense,thick,complex, sweet, and some good bitterness. Overall this stout is a great example of the Russian Imperial form. Very pleased with this beer!

Rating: 94 out 100