Victory Golden Monkey

I’ve been drinking so many black beers lately that I felt it was time for a change. I was in a beer rut. Every night it was roasty, dark malts and coffee/chocolate notes. That’s usually my thing, but I needed one evening of light and sweet to re-charge my beer batteries. I’ll surely go back to the porters and stouts and dark ales, for it is that time of the year. But last night I had a hankering for something golden and sugary. So I walked into the beer store with a purpose. And there it was right in front of me. The Golden Monkey. Exactly what I was craving! It may only be the fifth or sixth best beer on the Victory roster, but that’s kind of like being the fifth or sixth best player on the Pittsburgh Steelers. You’re still talking All-Pro caliber. Ladies and gentlemen, meet the Lawrence Timmons of beers.

If there’s any bad rap associated with the Golden Monkey, it’s that it’s a Belgian-style tripel that pales in comparison to tripels that are actually made in Belgium. Fair enough, I suppose - especially when you consider that Victory makes a German pilsner that beats even the Germans! So if you’re expecting a world class, definitive tripel, look elsewhere. But if you’re seeking a sweet, malty, American-ized Belgian that provides a warming alcoholic kick but still goes down crazy smooth, the Golden Monkey is not to be missed! Like all the Victory beers, it flat-out tastes good. If not an authentic tripel, it’s at least one of the most drinkable Belgian-style craft beers on the American market. Candied, fruity (banana is the big note here), and bready thanks to those extraordinary Belgian yeasts, the Monkey adds 2-row German malts, spices from Asia, and an herbal hop presence that comes through winningly on the back end. At a power-packed 9.5 percent ABV, the Monkey gives me that warm and fuzzy feeling within just a few sips. I sit in my recliner, drink, and reflect on how good life is. It’s a beer so sweet and refreshing you might be tempted to take it on as your new summer beer, finally kicking Corona to the curb. But no sane person would recommend the Monkey for sessioning - one or two of these will have you down for the count! It’s actually a great beer for the winter because of how quickly and delightfully it warms body and soul. It’s sweet yet wonderfully complex, a tad boozy yet silky-smooth going down. Hoppier and a little less yeasty than all-those world class tripels, the Golden Monkey is best judged on its own merits. And those merits can be summed up in one word: delicious.

Flying Dog Road Dog Porter

A Hunter S. Thompson themed beer has an awful lot to live up to. Road Dog Porter is more than up to the task. Road Dog was the first Flying Dog beer to be illustrated by Ralph Steadman, and Thompson himself was a fan and a friend of this fine beverage. Thompson even wrote an essay in honor of Road Dog's release, in which he cited an old Celtic proverb "Good people drink good beer". It took years of court battles before Flying Dog could finally sell Road Dog with the "Good beer, No Shit" slogan on the bottle – all the more reason to appreciate the uniqueness of the packaging! But what about the taste? After all that buildup, it had better be good beer. It is.

Flying Dog describes Road Dog as a Scottish porter. I never heard of a Scottish porter before! It's supposed to be malty, and that's exactly what it is. The stuff is full of malts - four different kinds, in fact. As such it comes off a little sweeter than your typically roasty porter (perhaps that's where the "Scottish" part comes in). But who wants "typical"? If every porter out there tasted exactly the same, what fun would that be? As porters go, this is far from bold, but tasty as hell. It's light, smooth, and very nicely balanced. Chocolate and licorice go together deliciously, while more subtle toasted malts (caramel, toffee) linger pleasantly on the back burner along with a finishing touch of earthy hops. More akin to a smooth session porter like Bell's than it is to the "gourmet" offerings of, say, Founders or Stone, Road Dog is a great porter choice for the average beer drinker and craft brew lovers alike. No shit!

New Holland The Poet oatmeal stout

It's that time of the year when I could go for a stout every single night. With there being so many outstanding American craft stouts out there, sometimes even the classic Guinness pint won't do. New Holland's The Poet is up there with just about any stout I've had. It is everything I love about this style and delicious in numerous ways. Like all good oatmeal stouts, it's smooth with a touch of sweetness. It's got the wonderfully roasty character you'd expect, with coffee and chocolate flavors hitting all the right notes. The oats add an extra dimension of taste and a super-silky mouthfeel. Hops bring a just-right bitter finish, and all in all this is pretty close to a perfect stout. It's rich and full-bodied yet drinkable and thirst-quenching. We often think of an oatmeal stout as a heavy, "meal in a glass" type beer, but The Poet is surprisingly sessionable. It's got a moderately low alcohol by volume (5.2 percent) and goes down wicked easy. Suck it down all night, or slowly savor a single bottle as you warm yourself by the fireplace. Either way, you can't let stout season go by without enjoying The Poet.

Bell's Hell Hath No Fury...Ale

I picked up a six-pack of Bell's Hell Hath No Fury en route to the Notre Dame/Western Michigan game this past October. The Irish won but would not pick up another victory for an entire month. The morning of November 13th they sat at 4-5 and had been written off entirely, mocked by the usual scoffers who pegged the Brian Kelly hire as yet another failed attempt at reviving a fallen power. But the Irish would beat a ranked Utah team that day and not lose again the entire season, a run culminating in a New Year's Eve beasting of Miami that gave the domers a respectable eight wins for 2010. Similarly resilient is the Hell Hath No Fury, a Bell's mid-fall seasonal that originally got lost in the shuffle of my sizable Andersons beer score. I rediscovered it months later, a couple of bottles hidden in the fridge behind a wall of porters and stouts from my Christmas brew spree. It's hard to believe I wasn't touting this stuff months ago. What a terrific beer!

On paper, HHNF sounds like a really weird beer: half fruity Belgian ale, half roasty stout. I know! That's kinda strange, right? Actually, though, it's pretty delicious. The yeasts are sweet, with fruity (figs, raisins, prunes) and sugary (molasses, candy) notes meeting the bitter chocolate malts and roasted coffee profile of a stout or porter. And it works perfectly, with the fruity sweetness cutting into some of the roasty bitterness, but not totally subduing it. In much the way a milk stout or a vanilla porter somehow heightens a roasty flavor profile by balancing it out, HHNF attains a near-perfect blend. The difference here is that the Belgian yeasts are not just there for balance - they're tasty in their own right and just as important to the beer as the dark malts. To describe this merely as sort of a sugared porter would not be quite right. It's so much more than that. You could just as easily think of it as a roasty Belgian! I can see why it's a fall seasonal rather than a winter specialty. It's rich and warming, but also sweet and refreshing, the two beer styles co-existing in a beautifully equitable marriage. And you know I'm fond of beautifully equitable marriages.

Sadly, I only have one bottle of this fine ale left. It won't hit store shelves again until August at the earliest. But that's ok. It gives me something to look forward to. Michael Floyd's coming back for another season! Bell's Hell Hath No Fury, like Notre Dame football, will be a force in the fall of 2011.

Founders Red Rye PA

Founders beer is so unbelievably good that it makes me a little suspicious. How could one brewery make so many incredible beers? Do they sprinkle their mash tuns with magic dust? Are they privy to mysterious techniques and alien technologies provided by the albino elitists who live under ground and secretly control all the world’s governments? Do they top off every bottle with a drop of blood from a virgin sacrifice? I've tried six of their beers so far, and every one has been out of this world. There are still at least nine more Founders varieties I've yet to taste, but rest assured I'll get there. My bucket list is full of references to Founders beer.

I'm not saying that I reserve Founders beer for special occasions. But in the event of a special occasion, you can bet I'll be drinking Founders. Last night for the BCS Championship Game, I broke out a bottle of Red Rye PA - a Christmas gift from my wife's godmother. After one sip, my taste buds were rejoicing in heavenly song. The Red Rye PA is essentially a cross between a rye beer and an IPA. Like any good IPA, it's hoppy as hell. Super-hoppy doesn't always work for me, but in this case it totally does. The piny hops, so common in beers of this style, are assertive to say the least. But it's the Amarillo dry-hopped grapefruit taste that flat-out dominates. Mmmmm! This is a big, bold beer - yet so clean and smooth! A hearty dose of Belgian caramel malts and the spice of the rye add balance and complexity, but the citrus notes are large and in charge. This is a dangerously drinkable ale. I thought I would savor it last night but ended up draining my glass before a single point had been scored! Never fear, I had a Founders Porter in the fridge and game night meant a beer doubleheader. What a game it was, too. Not quite what I expected, but definitely a true classic and ultimately worthy of all the hype. You could say the exact same thing about the Red Rye PA!

Moose Drool Brown Ale

Moose Drool, the best selling beer in Montana, is supposed to be "the best brown ale you've ever tasted". Honestly, I have had better (Newcastle, Dogfish Head...). But nonetheless the hype over Moose Drool is to be believed. It's a creamy, drinkable, and unquestionably tasty take on the American brown style suitable for beer snobs and Joe Sixpack types alike. Malty as heck, but not overly sweet, it's got the nutty bread notes and roasty bitterness I like in a good brown ale. The caramel and chocolate malts in particular deliver a rich, nicely lingering flavor. If Moose Drool pales slightly in comparison to the Dogfish Head Indian Brown, that's hardly a dishonor. I'm not a hop-head, but I have to admit I'd be more apt to give Moose Drool an A-rating if the hop profile were a little more aggressive. Still, though, this is a top five caliber brown ale and one I'll surely buy again.

Great Divide Hibernation Ale

Finally an outstanding winter beer! I’ve tried quite a few since the weather turned cold, and I hadn’t found any I cared to drink again besides old standbys like the Sam Adams Winter Lager and the Samuel Smith Winter Welcome. I picked up a bottle of Hibernation Ale not knowing what to expect. Score! Although technically not a winter warmer (it’s an old ale), it is most definitely a winter beer. Like most winter beers, it’s sweet and malty and high in alcohol - ideally suited for these miserable cold nights we still have to endure for the next two months. Unlike most winter beers, though, it balances its sweetness with smoky malts and an aggressive hop profile. The big flavor tickles the taste buds with notes of caramel, chocolate, toffee, and dark fruit, kicks in with toasty complexity, and finishes bitter with piny hops that pack a punch but don’t upstage the malts. With every sip, I get that warm and fuzzy feeling. Just as importantly, this is one of the most delicious beers of any style I’ve had lately. Fat-bodied, complex, and wicked smooth, the Hibernation Ale almost makes me wish the winter season were longer!