Professor Good Ales

Courtesy beerpulse.com

Profiled by Ken Carman for professorgoodales.net

This is supposed to be an Imperial Coffee Porter? Coffee, I get: almost espresso, but not quite. About 30 srm, black, but clarity for that srm good. Low side of medium body that clings, along with the coffee, to the roof of the mouth. Imperial? No, not really: one would expect more body and at least the slight sense of a higher abv.

This has a long lasting, tan, pillow head. The presentation was pleasing, for a robust with coffee. Well, perhaps a tad too much coffee for balance. Malt bill seems rather simple: pale, hint of chocolate, maybe splash of roasted barley… in no way as complex as even just a robust porter should be. I can only give it a 3. Nice. Pleasing. But, frankly, I think the consumer would be looking for, um, Imperial Porter?

86 at BA. Looks to me like they may have been hacked. A lot of lower scores then a few super high. I always find that suspicious. Rate Beer was even worse. A 97 yet I noticed quite a few in the 2 point range. A few jacked it up high… that’s even more suspicious.

Seriously, stop hacking the ratings folks. Thank God you can’t touch us here at PGA.

The nose is the best part. Anubis does smell like a robust: not Imperial, porter should. And the rest, well, OK, but not impressive enough for the style it’s supposed to be.

Welcome to the PGA beer rating system: one beer “Don’t bother.” Two: Eh, if someone gives it to you, drink. Three: very good, go ahead and seek it out, but be aware there is at least one problem. Four: seek it out. Five: pretty much “perfecto.”

Profiled by Ken Carman for PGA

Also known as New Belgium brewery.

Nose in bottle: curry and coconut, some wheat but very, very soft: almost no nose in the glass. Odd how that can happen sometimes: it wasn’t open very long.

Appearance: nice pillow head that lasts, probably due to wheat. Hazy due to wheat proteins. Light yellow, perhaps a 2 on srm scale. Clarity? Hell, no, but not expected.This is what a wheat beer looks like. And also tastes like a perfect wheat beer should, with an additional, nice stab, of curry. Once again Lips of Faith redeems themselves, however the coconut is far more subtle than it should be. Nice, solid, wheat sense that lingers all the way down: kind of like Wheaties without the toast, or as much sweet: slight at best.

Mouthfeel is wheat protein fullness. Curry on the roof of the mouth, no coconut. Wheat and a hint of pale malt.

Taste: wheat, curry, some toasted coconut. Nice wheat, slight bready, in the background. Very soothing, mostly balanced, quaff. Like liquid wheat bread only with curry and hint of coconut. I could see myself sipping this watching the sea under a palm tree.

78 on BA, 80 RB.

This could use a hint more coconut, but otherwise would do well in any competition. Otherwise perfect balance-wise: just needs a hint more coconut.

This is one of those, “gee I wish I could give it a 3.8” beers, “but I really feel a 3 is not quite right…” all due to the annoying fact the coconut sense is not quite there, except in the nose and so far in the background in the taste hardly worth mentioning. So, a 4.

Welcome to the PGA beer rating system: one beer “Don’t bother.” Two: Eh, if someone gives it to you, drink. Three: very good, go ahead and seek it out, but be aware there is at least one problem. Four: seek it out. Five: pretty much “perfecto.”

Courtesy johnnypm41.blogspot.com

Profiled by Ken Carman for professorgoodales.net

Did we get a bad bottle? Nose in bottle is soapy, pepper, some sweet with some malt otherwise way in the background. Hops in nose? Ah, NO. Hint of corn: DMS, in nose, and butter: diacetyl.

Great clarity, at a golden srm of about 3 or 4. Great puckered pillow head that lasts and lasts. Nice legs.

Yes: I’m referring to THE BEER, perv!

Mouthfeel: pepper phenols, moderate body that lingers, few hops for style: little bitter, more fruity as in hint of orange and grapefruit. Slight corn: DMS, and butter: diacetyl. More corn, diacetyl is more a slight slickness.

Taste: an easy quaff and this might made a somewhat accurate Belgian with pepper phenols. It is not even an IPA. Imperial? Uh, NO. Pale malt is obvious base, no carmelization noticed. Almost honey-ish, but I think this is more just the pale malt. Hardly even an IPA. Slight corn in taste too: DMS.

BA: 63, RB: 15, 0 for style. Both listed as Minhas Brewery, rather than Rhinelander. This, according to Wiki, is basically the old Joseph Huber Brewery. As one reviewer wrote for BA: “they’re trying to slide under the craft radar through their affiliate breweries.”

I simply can’t even go with a 2 here. 2 would be too generous, IMO. They missed the style, they missed the intent of any brewer not to bottle defects and, less important but noted: I’m annoyed at the continual attempt to disguise bigger brewers as craft. This one has apparently worn several suits in an attempt to dress themselves out as craft. Doesn’t figure into the score but here: will be noted.

You know, Matt Brewing rebranded themselves as Saranac years ago, but I give them credit for many serious, respectful, successful attempts, and successes, at being craft-like. I respect that, and only use “like” to reference size of the brewery. Personally, if this is what it’s supposed to be like, I’d fire everyone who made the decision to let it out the door. If I were going to include all that in the score on this review I’d go below 0. But that wouldn’t be professional, and the professor might never let me write here again.

Welcome to the PGA beer rating system: one beer “Don’t bother.” Two: Eh, if someone gives it to you, drink. Three: very good, go ahead and seek it out, but be aware there is at least one problem. Four: seek it out. Five: pretty much “perfecto.”

Written by Jerry Buckley for Professor Goodales and The Brew-Score

At our most recent home brewers’ outing, my editor: Ken Carman, asked me to write another article for his on line journal. When I protested that I was stymied as to any interesting topic I might bring to light, I was jostled into gear when Ken suggested I write about “whatever” it is that inspires me to brew my own quirky concoctions. I’m that guy in our homebrew group known for “doing something stupid” to each batch. And no, I never was very good at dot-to-dot, paint-by-numbers, or coloring inside the lines either for that matter. Continue reading “Outside the Lines”