Beer Dude: Fullers Vintage Ale 2007

Beer Dude: Fullers Vintage Ale 2007: " Writing about beers that I have enjoyed gives me an opportunity to re-live the beer experience and think about the fun that was had w..."

Fullers Vintage Ale 2007

     Writing about beers that I have enjoyed gives me an opportunity to re-live the beer experience and think about the fun that was had with friends while drinking it. This Fullers Vintage Ale 2007, Bottle number 143489  has been in my cellar (closet) since I bought it in 2007. I bought several of these bottles because my son will be 21 in 2027 and I want to have a beer with him on that day that is nearly as old as he will be. With this goal in mind, I have to conduct periodic surveys of my supply to  insure that my storage system is not harming any of my precious liquids.
     I dusted the beer box off and placed it in my fridge before going to work Friday morning and thought about that beer all day long. By the time I got home I was ready to devour it. I poured this clear, copper colored ale into an English pint glass and produced a fine two fingered head. There was a touch of yeast in the pour so I waited for this to settle which also provided an opportunity for the beer to warm and open flavors. The smell was malty with light hops characteristic of English style ales. Once I tasted this beer I was captivated. This beer was so smooth and rich with lacing that lined the glass. At 8.5% abv, this ale delivered all the way around.

Beer Dude: Ninkasi Brewing Company, Total Domination IPA

Beer Dude: Ninkasi Brewing Company, Total Domination IPA: " It's Friday here in San Diego CA and my girl had prepared this incredible Wild Alaskan Coho Salmon with a white wine and leek cream sau..."

Ninkasi Brewing Company, Total Domination IPA

     It's Friday here in San Diego CA and my girl had prepared this incredible Wild Alaskan Coho Salmon with a white wine and leek cream sauce. I thought that this would pair well with the Total Domination IPA  my cousin had been telling me about just a few short weeks ago. Turns out she's a college age gal living in Eugene and happens to know good beer when she tastes it. She couldn't believe that I had never heard of Ninkasi and told me I should try it. Being that I value my family and their opinion, I wouldn't want to miss out on a quality beer so I honored her request when I came across Ninkasi at BevMo.
     Wow, I'm impressed. This beer poured a copper color with an active head into a tulip shaped glass. Not really having an idea of what I was getting into, I felt that this was the proper glass choice. Floral hops came to the nose with a smooth hoppy flavor that didn't bite my tongue but  was present to the point that I could appreciate the flavor of the hops throughout the quaff. I sensed citrus like grapefruit  with a touch of maltiness which I thought was good too. Adding to my experience was the smooth mouth feel which left a thin coating on my tongue then finishing quickly. All that remained was the solid lacing on my glass.
     I found this beer to be very flavorful and at 6.7% abv and 65 IBU,  I could drink this IPA as a session beer. As my first beer from Ninkasi, this was a great experience. I'm glad Samantha has good taste in beer.  I can't wait to get into more of  what Ninkasi has to offer.

Beer Dude: NYC Beer Tour

Beer Dude: NYC Beer Tour: " I can't believe that it took me 41 years to get to NYC. I have traveled to many countries on this planet of ours and had never been to..."

NYC Beer Tour

     I can't believe that it took me 41 years to get to NYC. I have traveled to many countries on this planet of ours and had never been to New York City until last week. Life and opportunity have kept me from going until now. Time, circumstances and pure stupid luck aligned  for this Dude to make his journey and it happened to coincide with NYC Craft Beer Week.
     My good fortune continued as my NYC beer experience began at the Ginger Man for no other reason than it was closest to our hotel and I was in need of some good beer. I was immediately impressed with the warmth of the Ginger Man's decor when I walked in the door. The staff was friendly, helpful and honest with their opinions about beers I should try. I had explained that I'm from San Diego and that I wanted a good beer that I didn't think I could get here at home. This led me to 400lb Monkey by Left Hand Brewing out of Longmont, Colorado. I wasn't sure if I could get this beer here in San Diego so I figured that I'd start with it. I'm glad I did. The beer was refreshing and went down easily. I could have spent time with a beer like this, but had to move on.
     My next beer was the BrewDog Paradox Springbank on Cask. I have had this in the bottle but didn't want to miss the opportunity to have it on cask. For me, this was a nice transition from 400lb Monkey, but I managed to get a sample of Goose Island Bourbon County Stout and this set my taste buds on fire. Nothing against Paradox, but I'm a sucker for the bourbon. This was a fantastic beer! Don't take my word for it, check out what the some of the reviewers at the Beer Advocate say about this beer and you will understand why I was so impressed. My only question is how or where  do I get more of this in San Diego. By this point I was thoroughly impressed with the Ginger Man and had to find out where else I might go in NYC to find beers that would broaden my horizons. The staff at the Ginger Man sent me to Rattle-N-Hum, and they also pointed out that I should stop in at the Whole Foods so that I could get a few bottles to bring home. To those of you in NYC that will be seeing this posting, you are so lucky to have the beer collection in that store, they have done a great job with it, and again, the staff there was so helpful.
     I was not disappointed by what I found at Rattle-N-Hum which was a more intense beer experience and a little closer to what I'm used to here in Southern California. The staff was kind and supportive of my quest for  beer that I can't get at home. I started with a beer made by Cigar City Brewing Company called Jai Alai .This was followed by Marshal Zhukov, a seasonal Russian Imperial Stout by Cigar City that I thought was really good. I followed that one with a Left Hand Imperial Stout and ended with the Left Hand, Twin Sister DIPA. Thank God that session ended when it did because those were some  pretty alcohol laden beers and I had another day of beer drinking ahead of me. I still had to make my way to the Blind Tiger.
     The Blind Tiger was a popular place with the locals. The bartenders were very helpful and patient as the place was loud, busy and challenging to order a beer. Well worth the effort as I completely trusted the bartender and drank what he or she brought me and tried to figure out what it was after the fact. Not my ideal way of doing things, but given the crowds, I was just thankful I had a beer. My first beer I think, was Harpoon Brewery's, Triticus.  The next beer was a Smuttynose Big A IPA followed by a Brooklyn Brewery Detonation Ale. All three of these beers have an abv from 9% to 11%. Needless to say, I was feeling pretty good by this point and still had maintain some semblance of order as we made our way to dinner. 
     By the end of the trip I was ready to come home. I needed the detox from the beers and needed to catch up on things that had been neglected. I thought the people of NYC were generally friendly and helpful. The beer bars were great because beer lovers understand another beer lovers drive toward discovery. I'm looking forward to a return visit.