Deus and done.

We walked in and the bar staff let us know that our Deus bottles were already on ice for us. We had to reserve them in advance since there's usually only one bottle in stock at a given time (at $50 a pop, it's clearly not their best seller). We wasted no time in cracking the first bottle, so here's the review without further delay...

Beer: Deus Brut des Flandres 2006 Vintage
ABV: 11.50%
Home: Buggenhout, Belgium
Slogan: "A sparkling, divine drink"

Now THIS is the true champagne of beers. The Deus is brewed and fermented in Belgium, and then turned/conditioned in caves in the Champagne region of France. During the weeks-long turning process (known as remuage) when the yeast is separated from the bottle walls and collected into the neck, each bottle is rotated slightly and pitch angle increased until the bottle is upside down. The neck is finally frozen and the bottle pressure drives out the yeast "cork." This same process is also used for actual champagne (the sparkling wine). Naturally, the Deus pours a pale golden color with lots of tiny bubbles. It has a light body, but with strong alcohol and a dry finish. The fruit flavors could be from apples or grapes. Great beer for a special occasion.

After finishing our three Deus bottles, we filled out a form with our info, our favorite staff member, favorite band, reason for existing, and finally our choice of dead author. So, now the mug. As a rule, you can't name your mug after an author already taken by another Mug Club member. Since there are around 400 members, you have to think outside the box - well, beyond authors of classic novels, anyway. People have also chosen writers of columns, memoirs, scientific publications, music, and screenplays. My choice: Coach John Wooden. Legendary UCLA basketball coach whose record wins, including 10 national championships, are still unrivaled today. Writer of several memoirs, including the "Pyramid of Success," his guide for being successful in basketball and life.

So what have I gained from this challenge besides alcoholism? Well, I've learned how much discipline it takes to drink (and write about) 135 unique beers of someone else's choosing. The number of my blog posts indicates that we've been to Bukowski's 62 times in the last 5 months. During this time, I've done plenty of reading about beer and participated in many nerdy bar conversations. I've learned that I like smoked beers and certain IPAs. I've learned that it's nice having a place to go where everybody knows your name. I've learned that this challenge is best undertaken as a team sport. I've been reminded how awesome our friends are - we've dragged them so many times away from the Red Line to Bukowski's in Inman when they probably would have gone elsewhere. They are always there to support our goals, no matter how healthy or unhealthy they may be! It's been a fun experience, but I'm glad this challenge is done. I'll be keeping notes on beers we try in the future, as well as ones we brew ourselves, but at a more reasonable pace.

Cheers!

...And then there was one

Beer: Peak Organic Oak-Aged Mocha Stout
ABV: 8.40%
Home: Portland, Maine, USA

Beer #134. Since they were out of the Fuller's Vintage, I was able to substitute this oak-aged mocha stout. This 22-oz Peak is an imperial, so it's not to be trifled with, especially on a Tuesday. Dark Taza chocolate (made in Somerville!) is mixed into the boil and coffee is added during conditioning. Both flavors are dominant here, but I could also pick out a more subtle vanilla. The beer has a very rich, creamy texture (in contrast to the Double Chocolate, up next) with a slightly bitter finish.

Beer: Young's Double Chocolate Stout
ABV: 5.20%
Home: Bedford, England, UK
Slogan: "Pure Luxury"

This beer had been mistakenly marked on my card (don't worry, I had a few others to make up for it!), but I tried my friend's since she saved it until second-to-last. If the previous beer was like a chocolate lava cake, the Young's is a cafe latte. The chocolate and coffee flavors are soft and muted. Some might prefer more well-defined flavors, but we can all find times to appreciate a highly drinkable stout!

At this point we've done all the work leading up to graduation day this Friday, where we will each be drinking our final (and most expensive) bottle: 2006 Deus Brut des Flandres.

Fall Christmas

Beer: He'Brew Origin Pomegranate Ale
ABV: 8.00%
Home: Clifton Park, New York, USA
Slogan: "The Chosen Beer"

I've honestly had enough of waking up with a headache on a work day, so I decided to do the 22 oz Pomegranate in our final obligatory day session. Pours a clear amber with an off-white head. There's plenty of tart pomegranate in the flavor with some sweetness, but it has a surprisingly bitter finish. Not bad, but not my fave.

Beer: Southern Tier Pumking Ale
ABV: 8.60%
Home: Lakewood, New York, USA
Slogan: "Long Live the King"

Not that I needed this imperial ale to follow the Pomegranate, but when the bar staff offered me the STBC Pumking in place of the kicked Magic Hat #9, it felt like Christmas day. I'd been eyeing that tap at the center of the bar for the last couple of weeks! Behold the gorgeousness that is the King. With its clear orange color and generous head that smells like pumpkin pie, this beer embodies everything that is Fall. The spices also make their presence known in the flavor, the most dominant being cinnamon and nutmeg. Substantial pumpkin flavor along with a bit of sweetness - great balance. I'm in love.

Odds and Ends

Our Deus bottles have been reserved for next Friday, which gives us a deadline for tying up loose ends and finishing the rest of our beers! Since Bukowski's recently decided to stop ordering the Sri Lankan Lion Stout on our list, they offered the Finch's Secret Stache bottle special as a replacement.

Beer: Finch's Secret Stache Stout
ABV: 5.30%
Home: Chicago, Illinois, USA

I was taken aback by this delicious stout, which has an immediately recognizable vanilla bean flavor mixed with chocolate and roasted coffee. It pours a deep brown with a tan head that gives off a mouth-watering aroma. This is a hearty, full-bodied stout that I'd order again in a heartbeat. It's the first beer I've had in this challenge from Chicago - we need to try more!

Beer: Harpoon UFO Raspberry Hefeweizen
ABV: 4.80%
Home: Boston, Massachusetts, USA
Slogan: "Love beer. Love life."

Here's an old friend that I've been saving to follow up a strong beer when I needed it, but I might as well drink it now! This UFO (Un-Filtered Offering) pours a hazy, light rose color with a raspberry aroma that hits you in the face as soon as you pick it up. Tart raspberry flavor with a little bit of sweetness, but not too much. A lighter-bodied version of the Lindeman's Framboise. Tasty and super girly!

Final Countdown

Beer: Schneider Aventinus Wheat Doppelbock 2006 Vintage
ABV: 8.20%
Home: Kelheim, Germany

I'm down to eight with three vintages and a few odds and ends. I decided to start with this 2006 Aventinus, which came wrapped in paper (always a good sign)! Since 1999, Schneider brewery has aged 240 cases of Aventinus in their ice cellar for a minimum of three years, where it is then released every Fall. This wheat doppelbock is delicious and decadent. It pours a rich mahogany with a head that had dissipated by the time I remembered to take a picture. The flavors are complex and took me a while to figure out, but it's a mixture of dark fruit and subtle chocolate. There's definitely some bite - I'd be interested to see how the flavors change with more aging.

Beer: Lindeman's Framboise
ABV: 2.50%
Home: Vlezenbeek, Belgium

A beer like this one should definitely be treated as a dessert - drink it in moderation. It pours a deep red with a surprisingly pink head that gives off a concentrated raspberry aroma. Intensely sweet and sour raspberry flavor with lots of carbonation. Some people have recommended mixing this beer with a dark stout on the list, which seems like it could be a good pairing! Interesting to think of it as a Chambord, but with beer...

Black and White

Beer: Blue Moon
ABV: 5.40%
Home: Golden, Colorado, USA
Slogan: "The right blend of ingredients and imagination"

Pretty standard - Blue Moon is actually brewed by Coors. This Belgian-style wit beer pours a hazy orange-gold with virtually no head, and smells faintly of citrus and wheat. This beer is not at all bitter and goes down very easily. An average beer and a safe bet if you're not sure about other options.

At this point, I got a text message from a friend asking me if I was at Bukowski's. I was wondering if she was watching us (since it was a random Wednesday) before she said she saw my check-in on this one beer app I've been using. Between that app and MapMyRun, she has the distinct privilege of seeing my drinking and fitness accomplishments as they happen... Love it!

Beer: Ipswich Oatmeal Stout
ABV: 7.00%
Home: Ipswich, Massachusetts, USA

Pours a brown-black color with a thin tan head. The taste is rich and bittersweet with a dry finish, reminding me of a strong dark-roast coffee or espresso. This stout sits heavy, but I like it! A great beer for a cool night.

Reunion

After 2 weeks with one of us out of town (and then sick all last weekend), the mug team is back to operating at full strength once again. Even though it was only Monday, we got back to work immediately.

Beer: Westmalle
ABV: 9.50%
Home: Westmalle, Belgium

Unusually dry and bitter for a Trappist, at least for the ones I've tried - it's the only Trappist Tripel on our list. Light-bodied, simple, and clean with a fruity aroma. This one closes out the Trappist category - getting closer to the finish!

Beer: Hitachino Red Rice Ale
ABV: 7.00%
Home: Naka, Ibaraki Prefecture, Japan

The Red Rice Ale is definitely unique. Strange is a better word. There aren't any strong aromas. I think it tastes like candy, specifically rock candy, but with a dry finish. It's interesting, but it didn't blow me away. I'd probably have to be in the right mood to order it again.

Gameday

The bar was pretty quiet on Saturday afternoon, so we were able to watch the VT-Marshall game on ESPNU without any objections. Good thing because we don't get the channel at home...

Beer: Avery Hog Heaven Barleywine
ABV: 9.20%
Home: Boulder, Colorado, USA

I heard that the Hog Heaven was a tough one, but I'm thinking maybe that had something to do with drinking it on a hot summer day. Definitely not ideal. The Hog Heaven pours a clear copper color with a head smelling strongly of hops. Dry and significantly bitter, but clean and crisp with just a hint of caramel. While it has more bitterness than I'd like, it's a good Fall beer overall.

Beer: Carlsberg
ABV: 5.00%
Home: Copenhagen, Denmark

Green-bottled beers have a very specific taste, and this beer is no exception. Must be all the crap adjuncts added to the beer to prevent skunking in these see-through bottles. If you must drink it, get it down while it's still ice cold. Forgettable.

In hindsight, ordering this beer was a bad decision. I was sufficiently drunk by 5pm and rather than going home to pass out on the couch, we hopped on a bus to Harvard Square and wandered around town. Nice little Saturday. Hey, at least we've almost finished the challenge! Down to 12!

Smoke 'n' Apples

Beer: Aecht Schlenkerla Rauchbier Weizen

ABV: 5.20%

Home: Bamberg, Germany

I love how this beer smells like clothes after a night at a beach bonfire. Pours a translucent amber with a huge foam head. Interesting because it's a fairly light-bodied wheat beer brewed with a smoked malt. This beer is my third Bamberg smoked variety and I think this one's the best. I'd recommend trying this beer on a cooler day with some smoked meat - really good!

Beer: Floris Apple
ABV: 3.60%
Home: Melle, Belgium

In a completely different direction, but still keeping in the spirit of Fall, I ordered this apple wheat brew by the brewery that makes Delirium. It pours hazy golden with a small, short-lived head. Smells strongly of green apples! It tastes both sweet and sour like an apple-flavored soda. A nice dessert!

The bar manager thought it would be hilarious to tell us that the bar is moving... to Lynn. I was ready to have a meltdown right there when he laughed at our reaction and told us they were just moving into a recently vacated space a block down the road. Sometime next year. Nice, it'll be closer to our place!

Yeti

Beer: Great Divide Yeti Imperial Stout
ABV: 9.50%
Home: Denver, Colorado, USA
Slogan: "Great minds drink alike"

Untamed. Imposing. The pour looks like a chocolate shake: Black beer with a mocha-colored head like the Founders Breakfast Stout. Strong roasted malt flavor with aggressive hops that really punch you in the face. Really good, but definitely a heavyweight. It would be great paired with food - a steak, strong cheese, or dark chocolate.

I have 16 beers to go and we're closing in on our goal. While drinking this beer and watching the Mannings go head-to-head in the Giants-Broncos matchup, we talked about the authors we might pick for our mugs. The mug club (a.k.a. "Dead Authors" club) requires that you pick a dead author whose name will be engraved onto your mug. Since divulging my potential authors right now would be like telling everyone my baby name, I'll share at the end.

Happy Hour After Hours

I decided to go with "easier" beers that I'd been saving for situations like this one, where I'd already been through a couple of drinks at happy hour.

Beer: Dogfish Head 60 Minute IPA
ABV: 6.00%
Home: Rehoboth Beach, Delaware, USA
Slogan: "Off-centered stuff for off-centered people"

IPA fans make a fuss over this one for a reason. The 60 minute pours a clear orange with a bubbly head. This beer is tasty and refreshing with lots of citrus and hop. The hop bitterness delivers a punch, but it's not overdone. Definitely a standout IPA that I'd drink on any occasion.

Beer: Xingu Black Beer
ABV: 4.70%
Home: Santa Maria, Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil
Slogan: "Light & dark, smooth as silk"

The Xingu (pronounced "shin-goo") is a Brazilian Schwarzbier, a new one for me. Pours black with a tan head that recedes quickly. There's not much of an aroma, but the taste is unique. The Xingu has malty, dark fruit flavors with a fair amount of sweetness. It's unexpectedly light in body. I definitely liked it, but I prefer a dark beer with more earthiness.

Game Changer

Beer: La Trappe Quadrupel
ABV: 10.00%
Home: Berkel-Enschot, Netherlands
Slogan: "Taste the Silence"

First, I would generally advise against drinking this 25.4 oz La Trappe on a Tuesday. Along with a handful of other beers on our list, this quadrupel Trappist ale has been deemed by our fellow bar friends as a game changer. Absolutely true. Also absolutely delicious! The Quadrupel is a Belgian style of dark ale that is much stronger than a Tripel or Dubbel (10% ABV or higher). It is typically full-bodied with rich, malty flavors. This beer pours a clear amber with a generous creamy head. The sweet caramel flavor is most noticeable to me, and this quad has a lighter-than-typical body with a fleeting finish. It's also interesting that the La Trappe Quad is not a Belgian - It's brewed at De Koningshoeven, the only Dutch Trappist abbey.

Greek Fest

Before this session, we spent some time with friends at the annual Greek Fest in Somerville, having the world's best gyros and loukoumades with some delicious Opa-Opa blueberry beer. One of my all-time favorite meals. Too bad I only get it once a year! A little while after getting home, we headed back out to try a few more beers - stuffed, but up for a nightcap.

Beer: Schneider Aventinus Eisbock
ABV: 12.00%
Home: Kelheim, Germany

I should start by explaining the story behind this beer style: To create an Eisbock, the brewers partially freeze the beer so that the slush can be scooped out, concentrating the brew such that the alcohol overpowers any subtle flavors. I'm not really a fan. This beer pours a dark brown sludge with a moderately sized, but quickly dissipating head that gives off a sweet aroma. The taste is overly sweet with a syrupy body. Very strong. Banana is the only flavor I can really distinguish.

Beer: Aecht Schlenkerla Helles Lagerbier
ABV: 4.30%
Home: Bamberg, Germany

Pours a light golden with very little head. Light-bodied and crisp, but with noticeable smokiness characteristic of Bamberg brews. Not a surprise considering that the Helles is brewed in the same copper kettles as Schlekerla's famous smoked beer! The smokiness is more subtle than a Rauch, though, since no smoked malt is used. A unique brew that I'd order again.

Blanche

After a relatively quick bike ride through Arlington and Belmont, who doesn't crave greasy food and beer? With no room at the bar, we had no choice but to grab a table. Not a bad option, considering that both the NFL Kickoff and the Red Sox-Yankees game were on!

Beer: Blanche de Chambly
ABV: 5.00%
Home: Chambly, Quebec, Canada

The Blanche de Chambly takes the top spot for Belgian whites, in my opinion. Pours a hazy gold color with a huge head giving off aromas that are very fruity and a little sour. Abundant fruit flavors featuring tangy orange. Refreshing, well-balanced, and highly drinkable! Great session beer, which is a plus because of the seemingly bottomless 25.4 oz bottle. A side note: The bottle label depicts Fort Chambly in honor of the volunteer militiamen who died defending Lower Canada (against the US!) in the War of 1812. And with that, I've completed the Unibroue category - They sure know how to brew some fine beers up there! As far as I'm concerned, these Canadian beers are free to invade the US any time.

Non-Taco Tuesday

The first Taco Tuesday where I ordered something besides $2 tacos... Hey, we all need a change sometimes!

Beer: Maudite

ABV: 8.00%

Home: Chambly, Quebec, Canada

La Maudite = The Damned. Awesome beer. Like all other Unibroue beers, the label is eye-catching and seems to depict a boat ferrying damned souls to the gates of hell. The Maudite pours a cloudy red with a generous foamy head. The aroma is sour and fruity, typical of Belgian-style beers. Fruity and malty flavor. Very drinkable, and therefore dangerous!

Beer: Dragon Stout

ABV: 7.50%
Home: Kingston, Jamaica

Hard to believe it's from Jamaica, let alone the same brewery that produces Red Stripe! The Dragon Stout pours an intense dark brown with a thin, tan head. This brew is a sweet stout with dark, candied fruit flavors. A tad syrupy, it has a lingering finish. Good choice for your last drink!

Big Bottle Day

After Friday's Brewers Fest, I took a booze-free day before feeling recovered enough for Sunday brunch at Bukowski's. We met up a few hours before the Mug Club Party when they closed the bar to everyone else - Since we can't drink 25 beers in one afternoon, especially not those we have left, we'll have to wait for the next one. We figured this rainy Sunday would be ideal for powering through some tougher ones on the list.

Beer: Bear Republic Big Bear Black Stout
ABV: 8.10%
Home: Healdsburg, California, USA

Thick imperial black stout with a bubbly tan head right after the pour. Roasted earthy flavor with some sweetness. A strong brew in a big bottle - don't plan on a long session if this one's in the mix! A weekend bar visit is ideal for taking this one down.

Beer: Mönchshof Kellerbier
ABV: 5.40%
Home: Kulmbach, Germany

Mönchshof = monk's yard, Kellerbier = cellar beer. After a bit of reading, a cellar beer is an unfiltered German beer that ferments at cool lagering temperatures. The beer is matured in wooden casks with active yeasts and a loosened bung that allows CO2 to escape, reducing the amount of carbonation in the finished product. It's supposedly based on traditional recipes in which the beers are made in farmhouse cellars. The Mönchshof pours a hazy orange color with a finger head. I like the dimpled glass! The taste is malty and sweet. Not bad, but it's a little too sweet. It might be better paired with some good cheese!

Mass Brewers Fest

Last night was the Mass Brewers Fest at the WTC in the Seaport and my third year attending. Awesome (and ridiculous) as always, and quite the kickoff for Labor Day weekend. As I'm watching the first College Gameday of the season and recovering, it seems like a good time for some documentation.

There were so many great beers, but here are my favorite new discoveries:

• Riverwalk (Newburyport, MA) - Gnomad
• Belgian with lots of citrus
• Riverwalk (Newburyport, MA) - Unveiled 
• Hibiscus with pink peppercorn
• Mayflower (Plymouth, MA) - S'mores
• Cask beer, earthy, with subtle sweetness. Apparently made just for this festival, but I'll be keeping an eye out for it!

We somehow managed to convince each other that going to Bukowski's after the event would be a great idea (news flash: not our best), so we snagged a cab back to Inman for a nightcap.


Beer: Harviestoun's Old Engine Oil Porter
ABV: 6.00%
Home: Alva, Scotland, UK
Slogan: Viscous-Bittersweet-Dark

The color is as dark as it gets with a tan head. Strong, bitter coffee is the predominant flavor - it reminds me of the overly bitter Starbucks dark roast if you buy it in the cafe rather than make it yourself. The brewery describes this beer as having a residual bittersweet flavor, but I think it's actually pretty dry. Also smoky. My fellow mug teammate was adamant that it tastes like "liquid smoke in a meat locker" (keep in mind this was immediately post-brewfest). Earthy finish. I might have picked a bad time to get this one - I think I'd appreciate this beer more if I hadn't just tried dozens at the brewers fest.

Crush it like Quint!

"Crush it like Quint" Night (a.k.a. Gansett Night, a.k.a. Jaws Night). The mug team gathered at Bukowski's to watch Jaws on the TVs while enjoying some good beer. Since I already checked the Gansett off my card, I closed out the Bottle Specials category with my first beer of the night - huge accomplishment!

Beer: Newburyport Pale Ale
ABV: 5.50%
Home: Newburyport, Massachusetts, USA

This can of Newburyport is my final "bottle special." I drank it straight out of the can in the spirit of "Crush it like Quint" night, so I don't have any notes on the aroma or color. The first sip is a little harsh, but it gets noticeably smoother as you go. Dry and moderately bitter with earthy hops.

During this first round, we watched with the rest of the bar as Quint got crushed by Jaws at the end! I haven't heard the bar react that loudly since the Stanley Cup Finals.

Beer: Trappistes Rochefort 8
ABV: 9.20%
Home: Rochefort, Belgium

First of all, it should be noted that the Trappist Abbey of Rochefort has been brewing beer since 1595! After looking up pronunciation in several places, we started saying Rochefort as "Roash-For," which is the closest I can get in English to the French pronunciation. The 8, which is one of their browns, is Rochefort's most produced beer. The pour is so pretty and takes a little extra time to complete, which has been par for the course with Trappist beers. The beer is a murky brown color with an off-white head. The flavor is nutty and a little sour, with a long bittersweet finish.

TGIT

TGIT = TGI (Taco) Tuesday!!

Beer: Spaten Helles Lager
ABV: 5.20%
Home: Munich, Germany

I was disappointed starting with the aroma, when I realized that the beer was slightly skunked - Once again, not a surprise with the green bottle. One of our good friends who joined us at the bar said that it reminded her of Stella Artois and my fellow mug teammate used the phrase "faint field corn" to describe the taste - I just couldn't get past the skunkiness to distinguish anything else on my own.

Beer: Allagash Tripel Ale
ABV: 9.00%
Home: Portland, Maine, USA

While I've had the Allagash White many times, I've never tried their Tripel Ale. Delicious brew! The pour yields a generous fruity-smelling head on top of a translucent golden brew. I immediately recognized citrus fruit with a slight sweetness to accent the flavor.

Beer: Lindeman's Peche
ABV: 2.50%
Home: Vlezenbeek, Belgium

This beer has the lowest ABV on the list so far, which balances out the Tripel quite nicely! Pours a clear, light amber with virtually no head. The peach aroma is immediately apparent. The taste reminds me of an ice wine - sweet and almost syrupy. It's hard to believe this bottle is 12 oz - It looks larger and the Peche is a slow-drinking beer. I recommend splitting it as a dessert!

And with that, everyone on the mug team has reached triple digits! Cheers to being on the home stretch!

Post-ride session

Cheers to post-ride sessions on a Saturday afternoon!

Beer: Flying Dog Old Scratch Amber Lager
ABV: 5.50%
Home: Frederick, Maryland, USA
Slogan: "Good people drink good beer"

The Flying Dog labels have been catching my eye for years. It turns out that the label art is the work of Ralph Steadman, who famously illustrated Hunter S. Thompson's Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas. In fact, Steadman was introduced to the Flying Dog founder by Thompson himself (he lived down the mountain from the brewery's original Colorado location). Anyway, about the drinking experience... The pour yields a very thin head on top of a clear amber brew. This is a well-balanced beer: Its malty, slightly sweet and slightly bitter flavors remind me very much of the Full Sail Amber. Very drinkable.

Beer: Hitachino Nest Real Ginger Brew
ABV: 7.00%
Home: Naka, Ibaraki Prefecture, Japan

This Japanese beer is categorized as an herbed/spiced beer in Beer Advocate. In addition to their beers, Kiuchi Brewery also makes sake and shouchu (a traditional Japanese, high-alcohol spirit made from sweet potatoes that I should definitely try). The beer pours a light orange color with virtually no head, but it takes no time at all to detect the robust ginger aroma. Surprisingly, though, the ginger is subtle in the beer's flavor and it was quite delicious. I've had ginger drinks that were way too harsh and I was worried this experience would be similar. Not so. Very refreshing with just a touch of sweetness.

Beer: Bass Pale Ale
ABV: 5.00%
Home: Burton-upon-Trent, Staffordshire, England, UK
Slogan: "Ah, that's Bass"

The beer pours a copper color with no head. The aroma gives a fairly accurate preview of the flavor, as it's too subtle to determine anything specific. All I can say about the taste is that it's a bit tangy. It's not bad, but not memorable. I don't remember the last time I had this beer by itself - It's better in a Black and Tan!

Lagunitas Night

Beer: Lagunitas Sonoma Farmhouse Ale
ABV: 5.20%
Home: Petaluma, California, USA
Slogan: "Life is uncertain, don't sip"

Until we're done with the challenge, this is the only beer I'll review that's not on the card! We couldn't resist tonight's "get a pint, take a pint glass" special for all Lagunitas beers on draft. Pretty sweet glasses, too, if you ask me! Good lord, this beer is delicious. It's light-bodied, lightly hopped, and ever-so-slightly bitter with an earthy finish. There's a subtle spice in this beer that I can't quite identify - yet another feature that makes this beer unique.

Beer: Affligem Blond Ale
ABV: 6.80%
Home: Affligem, Belgium

I figured it would be a quick visit since the bar was so crowded for Lagunitas Night, but we ended up getting just one more (big surprise). Mine was the Affligem Blond, which was fantaaaastic. Beautiful pour with a thick, foamy, off-white head atop a clear golden beer. The aroma is a little fruity and slightly sweet. Super drinkable with a slightly nutty flavor - almost like hazelnut.

Random Taco Tuesday

Beer: Ayinger Celebrator
ABV: 6.70%
Home: Aying, Germany
Slogan: "The best thing about Munich is the road to Aying"

This beer pours a very dark brown with a thin head that dissipated before I could get a picture. My friends really enjoyed this beer, and I liked it, but I wasn't completely into it. It's a doppelbock that's intensely bitter and sweet, neither of which I enjoy in excess. I did get a toy goat, though! (Fun fact: Bock also means "goat" in German)

Beer: Pilsner Urquell
ABV: 4.40%
Home: Plzen, Czech Republic
Slogan: "We made the world's first golden pilsner and we never stopped"

I figured I'd balance out the Celebrator with a lightweight. This beer's actual Czech name is Plzensky Prazdroj ("original source of pilsner"), but clearly better known by its German name.  I remember being able to easily drink this beer when we'd buy a six-pack in grad school, but it just doesn't taste that great anymore. It's a light-bodied beer that is more bitter than sweet, and even a little metallic.

Dupont Saison

What better time to drink a 25.4 oz bottle than a lazy Sunday afternoon?

Beer: Dupont Saison
ABV: 6.50%
Home: Tourpes, Belgium

The time has come for the pride and joy of Brasserie Dupont. Now, we all know what happened with the Moinette Brune a few weeks ago, so I was mentally prepared this time for a one-and-done. The sound of the cork popping lets you know that this bottle means business. Since I got three glasses out of this one, I have plenty of experience with the pour... The brew pours a cloudy golden with a substantial fluffy head. Another mug team member had the experience of a very slightly skunked (just by aroma) bottle, but she still enjoyed it! The flavor is mainly wheat and banana, but there's also a bit of citrus and light hops. Light bodied and well carbonated.

The bartender was kind enough to keep the bottle on ice while I was working on it, which made this drinking experience extra awesome. I would highly recommend doing the same for anyone drinking this beer!

Two-a-days

Two-a-days, as in trips to the bar. After a 32 mile bike ride, my legs somehow got me to the bar for lunch. And a beer. I guess we figured that after this ride, being next to an open window would be best for everyone involved.

Beer: Sol Cerveza
ABV: 4.50%
Home: Monterrey, Mexico
Slogan: "This is Espiritu Libre"

In my delirium, I forgot to take a picture until after I'd finished this beer. Take my word for it, though, the color was a pale golden. Drank it straight out of the clear bottle (normally bad). I'm sure my opinion would have been different at any other time, but the Sol was absolutely delicious. Ice cold and refreshing. I could have put another one down easily if I wasn't in such a calorie deficit.

When we came back that night for a real session, it was slightly embarrassing to say that we'd been there earlier that day and that we didn't need a new printout of our cards...

Beer: Pretty Things Jack D'Or
ABV: 6.50%
Home: Somerville, Massachusetts, USA
Slogan: "Stay pretty & drink real beer"

Here we go, finally a hometown brew! So local, that we've met the brewers a few times at events around town. Honestly, the Jack D'Or has never been my favorite from Pretty Things, but I find it much easier to drink now after having tried so many different beers. They call the Jack D'Or a simple table beer, or "American Saison," inspired by the Dupont Saison and some favorite local IPAs. It pours a clear golden, with a light head that laces nicely. As for taste, it's fairly bitter with a dry, spicy finish. According to their beer notes, though, there are no spices in this one. Just the basics: Malt, oats, rye, sugar, hops, and yeast. Respect.

Beer: Avery Ellie's Brown Ale
ABV: 5.50%
Home: Boulder, Colorado, USA

When I saw this beer on draft, I wasn't in a huge rush to get it, as it's pretty good when poured out of a can, but I got it anyway! The Ellie's Brown is one of my go-tos, as it works for me all year round. It pours a deep red/brown with a big head that gives off a slightly nutty aroma. The taste is not too complex, with a bit of nuttiness and a slightly sweet finish. Very drinkable.