OT - Beer Assistance
So, I'm glad we're back in OT season, because MGoBlog is probably the only community I can think of that I'd trust for beer advice.
The big family Christmas dinner is tomorrow, and we're haded to Mancy's Italian in Toledo, OH. We haven't been there in a few years since a bad experience (everything was wrong, and the manager basically said "sucks to be you") a few years ago, but Grandma wanted to do it there again, so back we go. Anyhow, since I haven't been there in a while, I thought I'd take a look at the menu ahead of time.
They're now offering Stone's Black IPA - Sublimely Self Righteous Ale. Between the wife and I, dinner itself will be close to $100, so I hate to blow money on a beer I don't enjoy, but this one looked interesting. I normally do not care for very dark beers unless they're quite smooth like Guiness, Leinie's Creamy Dark or something similar. A Heavily malted Stout or Porter isn't my cup of tea (mug of beer?). I go in more for hoppy IPA's, Red Ales, etc. This is described as an IPA, though, and some of the reviews say the hops are quite pronounced. I can't imagine you'd want a beer too hoppy with a heavy malt note.
Has anyone had this, and can they dscribe it from the point of view of someone who's not big on heavy malts? Should I try something new, or save my drink budget for an after dinner single malt? (Oban would hit the spot, methinks).
December 20th, 2013 at 11:32 PM ^
December 21st, 2013 at 8:07 AM ^
December 21st, 2013 at 9:46 AM ^
December 20th, 2013 at 11:32 PM ^
MGoBlog is a great place, but you'll get the best information on whether you think you'll like the beer from the reviews in the link you provided. Personally, I don't like Black IPAs because of the heavier (than in a traditional IPA or DIPA) malt flavor. I don't mind malts at all (I love 'em), but if I am having an IPA I want to have a "hops destroying my palate sort of experience."
December 20th, 2013 at 11:44 PM ^
Beer Advocate isn't always the best place to get reviews because they have a heavy bias towards IPA's.
December 20th, 2013 at 11:54 PM ^
December 20th, 2013 at 11:55 PM ^
Who is "they"? Thousands upon thousands of reviewers? I think it's more that the market is dominated by IPAs than anything else. Add the fact that an overwhelming majority of the users are American, and IPAs and to a slightly less extent, Stouts, are going to reign supreme. American brewers are great, but they largely dissapoint in some other great styles (pretty much any Belgian style beer). If Belgian Quads, Dubbels, Trippels, Guezes, Lambics, etc were produced on anywhere near the scale as American IPAs, I would bet they would be right up there with the IPAs. Simply put, IPAs appear to have bias because there are so many of them being produced. That's my two cents anyways.
December 21st, 2013 at 1:09 AM ^
I've been on that site for almost 3 years now.
The ratings are influenced by two things: Rarity, and ABV.
Look through the rankings and see how most of the IPA's are ranked 4 or higher. Then see how Pilsners are almost all in the 3-3.5 range. I'm not the only one on this board who feels this way; it's been brought up before with how much hype beers like Dark Lord and Pliny The Younger get.
December 21st, 2013 at 1:18 AM ^
If we were to go off of high ABV and rarity, then Imperial Stouts should be dominating, not IPAs or DIPAs. BCBS, KBS, the Abyss, etc are far more "rare" than Pliney, HT, Scuplin, etc. They also have much high ABVs than IPAs.
December 20th, 2013 at 11:38 PM ^
http://beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/147/38470
"The taste up front has a deep malt character."
"Taste is a perfect dichotomy; it's like an imperial IPA and a robust porter are fighting it out in my mouth."
"Similar to the aroma, the taste is a wonderful balance of two distinct flavors: roasty and hoppy."
December 20th, 2013 at 11:55 PM ^
This may not have answered the question, but I'm a bit sauced myself.
December 21st, 2013 at 1:02 AM ^
December 21st, 2013 at 8:45 AM ^
Anything from Stone is going to be good. Self-Righteous is, however, widely available. I have not had their Black IPA (yet).
The Black IPA's are fairly new to the market, and are one of my personal favorites. The malts are roasted, giving it a dark color and a hint of coffee/chocolate flavor. They are heavily hopped, but not as "heavy" a body as you would imagine.
Like MGoBrewMom said, this is not a Guinness/Stout. The first one I tried was New Glarus' Black Top. It was much better fresh at the brewery than it was in bottles (I prefer a strong, hoppy bouquet).
My advice? Try both of the Stone beers (as mentioned, they should provide you with a sample, assuming it's on tap). Whicever you like best, drink the hell out of it! Based on your OP, you'll probably like the Self-Righteous better. That particular beer is in my top 5, and when my local beer store has it on the shelf, I always grab a few four packs.
Enjoy! Hope your family has a wonderful time!
December 21st, 2013 at 1:23 AM ^
Haven't tried that one, but I've had a few of Stone's beers and have really liked them. So I can't really advise on that specific one, but the Black IPAs I've had have been pretty good—much more like a IPA than a stout.
OT-ish. Anyone heading to Kuhnhenn's Winter Solstice Release tomorrow? I haven't had a ton of their stuff before, but the ones I've tried are amazing for such a small brewery. I'm trying to get there earlier to pick up some BB4D and a few other ones that are hard to find. And also pick up a 6er of DRIPA (because that's just a really good IPA).
December 21st, 2013 at 1:21 AM ^
Sublimeley Self Righteous is one of my top 3 favortie beers. If you like IPA's then you'll probably enjoy it. Its dark but not incredibly heavy. In my opinion its the best beer stone offers year round with Ruination finishing at a close second.
December 21st, 2013 at 8:36 AM ^
I have 2 Ruination in my fridge! Agree, one of my favorite beers, and a great bottle too!
Stone is one of the best craft brewers in the country right now, imho. I live in the midwest and we have a limited selection (usually Ruination/Self Righteous (Oaked as well). I keep begging the owner of the store to stock more variety, but he is at the mercy of the distributor.
He does carry a robust selection of Founder's, Bell's and Rogue, so I'm not complaining! =)
December 21st, 2013 at 5:23 AM ^
December 21st, 2013 at 8:47 AM ^
the first thing I do is check the beer menu of the establishment in question.
Good beer menu, I'll give it a shot. Awful beer menu, not a chance.
December 21st, 2013 at 2:46 PM ^
I'm assuming he meant the Guinness black lager, which is basically the exact same beer as Leinie's Creamy Dark.
December 21st, 2013 at 8:41 AM ^
always Great Lakes Christmas Ale
December 21st, 2013 at 9:18 AM ^
December 21st, 2013 at 1:20 PM ^
December 21st, 2013 at 8:57 AM ^
however, you may want to try beergraphs.com for some reviews. They attempt to objectively rank beers, not sure how successful they have been so far.
December 21st, 2013 at 9:13 AM ^
December 21st, 2013 at 8:36 PM ^
I live in Waterford, but Ms. ND Sux is in Comstock Park, about a mile from Perrin. I'm a huge Founders fan too, so trips to Grand Rapids don't leave me wanting for good beer.
Perrin is an up-and-comer steadily gaining in popularity. Very tasty and smooth. Original plans for packaging included the old style cans that you need a church-key (punch type) to open. Not sure if they still plan on that or not. Perrin gets two thumbs up from me, and I've been to 110 breweries in Michigan, not including the ones that have closed.
December 21st, 2013 at 9:17 AM ^
December 21st, 2013 at 11:24 AM ^
And I totally agree with the OP about Mancys Italian. Garbage for the price. You're better off going to the original Mancys instead. But this is first hand experience from 12 years ago, so things may have changed.
December 21st, 2013 at 9:47 AM ^
December 21st, 2013 at 5:49 PM ^
December 21st, 2013 at 10:01 AM ^
Beer. Is. Good.
That is all.
December 21st, 2013 at 8:37 PM ^
are very wise.
December 21st, 2013 at 10:07 AM ^
/drops mic
December 21st, 2013 at 10:19 AM ^
If they don't pour Two-Hearted find another restauant.
December 21st, 2013 at 10:33 AM ^
December 21st, 2013 at 10:57 AM ^
December 21st, 2013 at 11:53 AM ^
December 21st, 2013 at 10:28 AM ^
Founder's All Day IPA. A game changing product. Great taste and a low enough alcohol content that you can down a ridiculous number over the course of any function...
December 21st, 2013 at 10:43 AM ^
And they come in a reasonably priced 12 pack of cans.
December 21st, 2013 at 11:46 AM ^
The name says it all. It's in cans, which has advantages in the wild, and yes, you can enjoy it for hours at a time. It's also a good change of pace beer - IPA is not usually my go-to, and my wife is not a fan - but you can mix it in nicely with other things at tailgates and cookouts.
December 21st, 2013 at 10:59 AM ^
Quite hoppy, but still the nice winter notes of coffee and chocolate that you find in Porters and Stouts.
It's confusing to the eyes and taste buds if you've never had a HOPPY dark brew before.
Whatever you order, enjoy!
December 21st, 2013 at 11:17 AM ^
December 21st, 2013 at 12:38 PM ^
December 21st, 2013 at 1:04 PM ^
The Sublimely does not taste like a stout. It does have some dark malt notes but none of the heaviness/viscosity. If you like hoppy it's got it. Its one of the best representations of the style which is all over the place.
December 21st, 2013 at 3:07 PM ^
Yes indeed...21st Amendment's 'Back In Black' is fantastic.
Also, I highly recommend Rogue's 'Dad's Little Helper.' Very, very nice.
December 21st, 2013 at 3:19 PM ^
Except for the cheap domestic stuff I use to have to drink in college. Yes, I've had Stone's Black IPA SSRA. I found it to be a good balanced IPA. Some IPA's are so light they taste overly hoppy!
Hopefully they have it on draft and you can buy it by the pitcher. May save you $ over purchasing multiple pint glasses. Cheers!
December 21st, 2013 at 3:28 PM ^
I don't trust BA's reviews more than simply identifying if a particular beer is BAD. So long as it doesn't rate below a 2.5, I presume it's palatable and I consider it. For instance, Arcadia's Whitsun is one of my favorites, but it only ranks about a 3.5 there.
We usually have 25 or more people for our dinner, so asking for a sample, trying it, and then deciding to order one usually means I'll get my beer just in time for my entree to arrive. Plus I'm not sure if it's tap or bottles.
December 21st, 2013 at 4:22 PM ^
Is a great beer if you like an IPA with a great malt back. Has chocolate and citrus aroma and taste. Good beer to have in the winter. Amarillo and Simcoe give it the great aroma and taste. Get a sample if it's on tap, as others have said.
Also if you like DIPA's then I would highly reccomend Victory Dirt Wolf. Simcoe, Mosaic, Citra, and Chinook hops. Clean, refreshing, and great aromatic beer.
(meant to reply to the topic and not your reply)
December 22nd, 2013 at 1:29 AM ^