Brewery Spotlight: Jacob Leinenkugel Brewing Company

Every once in a while I’d like to take a break from reviewing beers and spotlight some breweries. And we’ll start with my absolute favorite, Leinenkugel’s, even though it’s only really a semi-craft brewery. Any place owned by Miller just can’t be completely craft in my mind.

Located in Chippewa Falls, WI, Leinie’s, as it is affectionately known, has never made anything I wouldn’t at least try. There is only one that I’ve tried that I can say I will not willingly drink ever again: Berry Weiss. I just am not big on overly fruity beer. Give me Ithaca’s Apricot Wheat any day, please and thank you.

That said, Leinie’s makes beer for everyone. And they rotate most of their beers. Get ’em while they’re cold, people! There’s a delivery of Leinie’s Limited coming to my apartment in two weeks. Can’t wait!

They’ve got Original and Original Light (which are really not that good, those are more for the “I usually drink MGD but want something with flavor today” crowd.) Also in the run-of-the-mill category are Honey Weiss, Red, and currently Classic Amber. For spring/summer beers, you’ve got your choice of Summer Shandy, Sunset Wheat, and currently 1888 Bock. For those of you who like dark beers, you can hope you can find a Big Eddy Russian Imperial Stout around, or go with the classic Creamy Dark. Leinie’s Oktoberfest is a great fall beer, and so is Fireside Nut Brown. And of course for those of you who like your beer to taste like a cocktail, there’s Berry Weiss.

As I mentioned, Leinie’s rotates their beers. Limited was out a few years ago as Northwoods Lager. They change the name but not the recipe. Classic Amber was out a long time ago as Amber Ale, I believe. So if you didn’t get to try Big Butt (a doppelbock) a few years back, just wait a few more years and it’ll come out again!

One of the best things about Leinie’s is that it’s available in a lot of places. It doesn’t have the national distribution of Sam Adams but it’s getting there. I can find Honey Weiss and whichever seasonal is currently out at my local Wegman’s. In Wisconsin you can find it all in your local grocery store or gas station, and you can find all the flavors. You can even get Original, Light, and Honey Weiss in cans for your tailgating needs.

The other best thing about Leinie’s is that it’s cheap. If you think good beer has to be expensive, think again. Now, Leinie’s doesn’t have to-die-for beer, but for $6 for a six pack you really can’t go wrong. Sure, you can get a 30-pack of Miller Lite for $12 in Wisconsin, but wouldn’t you rather have a 12 pack of Summer Shandy? I certainly would.

Samuel Adams: Infinium

Sadly the beer I’m reviewing isn’t available anymore (at least not anywhere in New York) but there’s still two bottles in my apartment! Today’s pick is a very interesting beer which was released just in time to ring in the New Year: Infinium.

First of all, the brewers at Sam Adam’s worked with the people at Weihenstephan, the world’s oldest brewery, to brew a different kind of beer that still met all the qualifications to be considered beer. Which is: malted barley, yeast, and water. Hops is not actually a requirement for beer, though the majority of beers include hops, as does Infinium.

Infinium is a different kind of beer. See how it’s being served in a champagne flute? This is the REAL champagne of beers. Sorry, Miller High Life. It is very carbonated (just like champagne), and has a crisp, clean, citrus-y fruity-scent. Just like champagne. See where I’m going with this?

Unfortunately the four kinds of malts kind of take over, and what you smell isn’t exactly what you taste. The four kinds of hops also seem to have disappeared as this doesn’t have much for bitterness.

I’m glad I tried Infinium, but in all honesty I wouldn’t buy it again. Especially not for the price. If it were available year round I wouldn’t buy it the way I buy Leinenkugel’s, that’s for sure. But for being a one-shot deal at this kind of beer, which will probably never be tried again, it’s not bad.

Try this if you like: War Horse Riesling Ale, Bell’s Sparkling Ale. These beers are a FAR better attempt at combining wine and beer.

 

Wells and Young’s: Young’s Double Chocolate Stout

True, it’s not winter anymore. Here in upstate New York it’s that weird season between winter and spring they don’t teach you about in school. But there’s still snow on the ground, which means I can review a stout!

Today’s selection is a yummy chocolate stout from Wells and Young’s in Bedfordshire, England.

As you can see, Young’s Double Chocolate Stout is beautifully dark with an almost hint of ruby, and a nice thick head on it (if poured right.) When you first open the bottle, or inhale the aromas from the glass, you immediately get “chocolate.” This ain’t yo mamma’s chocolate stout, baby. As you sip, you get more and more of that wonderful chocolate taste, and the hops add just the right amount of bitterness. The best part is, if you don’t like coffee stouts, in this beer the roasted malt flavor does not come out strongly. It is definitely a chocolate stout–not an espresso stout.

Unlike most stouts, this one is only about 5.2% ABV–so one pint won’t leave you feeling like you just played a round of Flippy Cup.

All in all, this is a great beer, especially for those of us who don’t usually care for very dark beers. If you like chocolate and you like beer, you simply must try this at least once.

Try this if you like: Fort Collin’s Brewery’s Chocolate Stout

Bad News for Goose Island Lovers?

Quick post while I’m at work. I mean….

Evidently Anheuser-Busch has bought out Goose Island. They’ve had a minority stake in the company since 2006, and have been helping to distribute it to more people, so this isn’t entirely unexpected.

Hopefully this doesn’t affect the craft quality of Goose Island’s beer. They are one of my favorite breweries and they make some damn good stuff.

Then again, being owned by Miller hasn’t really affected Leinie’s in any terrible ways, so maybe everything will be alright.

New Glarus Brewing Company: Spotted Cow

Today I’m reviewing one of my favorite beers from one of my favorite breweries. The worst thing about this beer? It’s only available in Wisconsin. While in college in Minnesota we’d occasionally make runs to the border to get New Glarus beer, among other things (196 proof Everclear, to name one.)

New Glarus Brewing Company (in New Glarus, WI), is a family run brewery in small-town southern Wisconsin. I have never tried a beer from them that I didn’t like. I don’t know if New Glarus considers Spotted Cow to be their flagship brew, but it’s definitely the most popular.

Spotted Cow is a cask-conditioned light farmhouse ale which goes with just about anything. New Glarus lists 22 different foods which go well with Spotted Cow.  The yeast is left in the bottle which gives the beer a naturally cloudy color, and enhances all the great flavors. It’s a little fruity, not very hoppy, and very easy to drink.

If you have the good luck to live in or near Wisconsin, pick one up and TRY it. Spotted Cow is perfect for any time of year and any beer drinker. It’s full of flavor, but not bitter or heavy. I could drink this all night, if not for the fact that I live in New York right now and the only way of getting Spotted Cow is for my wonderful parents to bring it to me.

I’ve yet to find a beer that tastes like Spotted Cow. If I had to pick something, I’d say that it’s a combination of a cream ale and a saison.

Try this if you like: Goose Island Sofie, Lift Bridge Farmgirl Saison.

Wychwood Brewery: Hobgoblin

While in Geneva, Eric and I stopped at the Beef ‘n Brew. It’s a fairly new restaurant, only been open two months, but their beer selection is to die for! They have about 15 beers on tap (mostly domestic mass-produced crap), but they have at least 50 selections in bottles. Probably more.

I decided to take a break from my normal light lager dinner selection and I decided to try an English Brown Ale by the name of Hobgoblin from the Wychwood Brewery in Oxfordshire, England. Yes, I picked it because of the name. It’s not often you find a beer that is so obviously aimed at the computer-gaming/fantasy/D&D type crowd. Which I happen to belong to. (What can I say, I love my fantasy-based RPG/adventure games.) On to the review.

The creators claim this is a “ruby beer”. I agree as long as “ruby” means “cross between red ale and stout.” Which is exactly what it tastes like. My concern before the beer even showed up was that it would be too bitter for my tastes. It wasn’t. You certainly get the taste of the hops but it isn’t overwhelming. If you don’t like overly bitter beers, this one is a dark to try.  While you drink it, you get hints of chocolate, which I love. The bottle itself was very drinkable, but I think this is a one-and-done beer.

Drink this beer while you’re eating something beefy-be that stew, burgers, or steak. I happened to be eating fish and chips with it. Very English night for me.

Overall the Hobgoblin was very good, but what made it special was the label and the name, not necessarily the taste. I would certainly try Wychwood’s other creations if given the chance.

I’d give you a “try this if you like” recommendation but I don’t have anything that comes to mind. If someone else has a comparison, feel free to let me know.

War Horse Brewing Company: Riesling Ale

This week Eric and I took a little trip down to Geneva, NY to go on some wine tastings and get away from work for a little while. We ended up discovering War Horse, this great little “soon-to-be-legendary” (as they call it) brewery on the shores of Seneca Lake. We tried 4 beers plus their old-fashioned root beer, which was AMAZING, by the way. Can’ t beat old fashioned root beer.

While the American Black Lager, Peace Bomber Ale, and India Pale Ale were certainly good, their Riesling Ale was the star of the show.

image courtesy http://3brotherswinery.com/War-Horse/war-horse.html

It’s a light wheat beer base with New York Riesling grape juice in it. The result is a little fruity, high on carbonation, not too hoppy, easy to drink, and TASTY. A perfect summer beer to match the…um…snow outside. (Well, it WAS sunny, I suppose.) I could drink this beer for hours on end. Unfortunately we only brought home one bottle.

Riesling Ale is a beer for anyone. It has a clean finish (no weird aftertaste), and is a unique taste you’re not going to get from your average summer ale.

Try this if you like: Bell’s Sparkling Ale