Summer is here, and what better time to throw some steaks on the grill and knock back a few cold ones. Well, there’s the poor mans way of doing it, and then there’s the $11K big baller way. Yes sir, this Bar/BBQ combo will set you back five figures but at least you can enjoy complete bragging rights by owning one of these bad boys.

Alpina’s Mobile Beer Bar its designed to keep your beer keg nice and cool for many hours without the need of electricity, thanks to a specially designed cooling system. Two mounting tops which can be used to add a grill or store an extra keg. The bar is complete with a tap system and compressor, CO2 cylinder, drip tray and tap for your favorite brew.

Who said you can’t drink craft in style?

-Cheers

The pale ale is one of the most popular beer styles in the world. Its origins date all the way back to the 1700′s in England where it was first brewed. Usually light in color, aromatic, and slightly bitter, the pale ale style has become a favorite amongst beer drinkers, as well as being the catalyst style that revitalized the craft beer movement in the United States.

Today I am paying tribute to the Pale Ale, which happens to be one of my favorite styles as well. Therefore I bring you three different Pale Ales, one from the West Coat and two from the East Coast respectively. This will be my first time trying any of these beers so I am being completely un-biased as I write these posts.

First off I bring you Anderson Vally Poleeko Pale Ale, based off Mendocino County, California. This brewery has been around since the 1980′s though it was recently sold to another company. Usually that doesn’t fare well, but lets hope the current owner continues the same brewing tradition that has made Anderson Valley a favorite on the West Coast for over fifteen years.

Appearance: Poured into a pint glass, hazy gold to orange color. Light carbonation ran up the glass. About an inch off-white foamy head that left a somewhat sticky lacing throughout.

Smell: Floral hops with hints of honey. Citric aroma of orange peel and pale malts. Overall, a nice and clean aroma.

Taste: Light bitterness, with a very pleasant citric hop flavor. The malts are nice and crisp, with a citric kick, never overpowering, but very refreshing. A little earthiness towards the middle, leaving a slight buttery aftertaste. Light bodied on the first couple of sips but slowly becomes creamier as it warms up.

Anderson Valley Poleeko Gold Pale Ale its the kind of beer that you’d want your non-craft beer drinker friends to get familiarized with. Very easy to drink, with a good balance of hops and light malts, make this pale ale almost taste like a pilsner on steroids.

-Cheers.

Rum lovers have had their share of alchohol on their chocolate for a while now, well the time is now for beer lovers to step in and get their sweet n’ hoppy treats. Beer Candy is taking care of you choco-holics with flavors that all beer lovers enjoy, including; IPA, Stout, Lager & Lambics.

Sounds crazy? probably, but worth giving them a try. Check them out at Beer Candy and let us know what you guys think.

-Cheers

At first glance one might confuse a Dale’s Pale Ale with just another macro-canned beer that plague all supermarket beer aisles, but don’t let this aluminum can fool you. This little guy is all craft. Oskar Blues Brewery has been brewing “craft in a can” since 2002 and have made a name for themselves for not only brewing some great beer, but also for pioneering this “uncommon” method amongst other craft breweries.

So why a can and not a bottle? Is there really a difference?

There’s some debate to this, but in reality all that matters is what’s on the inside, which happens to be Oskar Blues philosophy. Brewing great tasting beer in spite of its packaging. I picked up a six pack of Dale’s Pale Ale this past weekend at my local Publix Supermarket, here’s my take on it.

Appearance: Poured into a pint glass. Clear penny-like copper color, faintly carbonated. A cream colored foamy head formed on top of the glass, leaving a very sticky lacing on the glass.

Smell: Big pine notes upfront. A hint of pineapple and apricots. Very aromatic with a nice clean scent of floral hops.

Taste: Hop explosion right from the start, followed by a sweet taste of fruits and a little bit of caramel. The sweetness really hits the tip of your tongue as some of that apricot comes through. The hops are strong with a grapefruit bitterness. Medium bodied and crisp with a nice biscuit aftertaste that lingers on your palate, as well as some stickiness on the lips.

Dale’s Pale Ale embodies the robust and hoppy style of an American Pale Ale.  This wolf in sheep’s clothing will definitely put the myth of can beers being inferior to their bottled siblings to rest.

-Cheers.

Last night, we were invited to another monthly tasting hosted by Gold Coast Beverage Distributors. They were introducing Crispin Ciderto their portfolio. Honestly, we can say we are not very familiar with ciders, let alone the thought of picking up a bottle or six pack to take home, but perhaps Crispin might persuade us otherwise.

According to Crispin’s website, their “Hard Ciders are naturally fermented using a premium apple juice blend, not from concentrate, with no added malt, grape wine or spirit alcohol. Crispin’s unique American ciders are smoothed with pure apple juice, organic honey, or organic maple syrup, and contain no added colorants, sorbate or benzoate preservatives and are cold filtered for crisp refreshment…”

We tried four products from the Crispin line: The Original Apple Cider, Honey Crisp, Imported English Browns Lane, and the Fox Barrel Pear Cider.

To our surprise the ciders were not quite as sweet as we expected. Their flagship, Original Hard Cider was light in color as well as body. Slightly sweet apple candy up front with a dry champagne finish.

The Crispin Browns Lanealthough a cider by nature, had some familiar characteristics we associate with English Ales, notably a dry bitterness. It was dry and woody, with a faint flavor of parmigiano-reggiano.

The most “fruity” cider of the four was the Fox Barrel Pear Cider. A bright sweet bouquet filled the nose at first sniff. The flavor was as sweet as the smell. We got big ripe banana flavors with pear undertones.

Finally, we tried the Honey Crisp Ciderpackaged in a 22oz bomber. This cider had the cloudy look of a hefeweizen, both in color and texture. It was the most robust cider of the four.

We experienced ciders with different characteristics and flavor profiles, broadening our perspectives beyond the concept of “cider” as one generic beverage.

Crispin, a relatively new and small company, is bringing the craft attitude that has been so successful in the beer scene to the cider world. Producing high quality, specialty products and marketing to more discerning palates.

Thanks to Shane Rietow for sharing his products and knowledge with us. It is a pleasure to spend time with those who are as passionate about the products they produce as we are about enjoying them.

- Cheers

New Belgium’s Fat Tire Amber Ale its a beer with somewhat of a cult following. Known for its light bodied feel and crispness, this particular amber ale has been labeled as a session beer by most people. Unfortunately for us South Floridians, there is no distributor that I know of that carries New Belgium products, and the closest one happens to be up in Georgia. So obviously my interest for this beer had been peaking for a while, as you always want what you can’t have. However, the days of waiting and guessing about Fat Tire came to an end this week.

To make a long story short, my co-worker’s daughter who attends FSU, was able to bring a couple of six packs for her old man on her trip down from Tallahassee to Miami. My co-worker surprised me with two bottles of Fat Tire for me to profile. My expectations were running high on this beer from all the good things I had heard about it. Will Fat Tire prove to be worth the wait?

Appearance: Poured into a Bell’s pint glass. Pours a translucent honey color. Very low carbonation. A nice fluffy foamy head sat on top of the glass with a very faint running lacing.

Smell: Roasted malts, sour dough, and a faint citric aroma of hops on the backend.

Taste: Sharp malts upfront, specially after it warms up. Very light bodied with an effervescent mouthfeel, almost soapy-like. Faint hop character, its mostly malts that take over the overall flavor. A little hint of cherries in the background. The beer finishes crisp with a doughy and buttery aftertaste.

New Belgium Fat Tire is definitely a step-up from macro beers. A sessionable choice to some people due to its light body and decent flavor. I personally wouldn’t put it on my top list of session beers. Although I found it crisp and somewhat refreshing, the malts became a little annoying after a while.

-Cheers.