the "post your thoughts/review on the alcohol you have been drinking" /thread

[KillerGremlin]

Stella Artois - not bad, I like Stella. It's better than Heineken by quite a bit, but it loses some points in terms of price. This beer is way-the-fuck overpriced. Seriously, just because it looks like royalty does not justify the insane overhead you pay for this beer. At any rate, this is a great summer beer, and goes with burgers, brats and bbqs.

Goose Island Matilda - This is a Belgian Ale. It is brewed with wild yeast, and has a lot of interesting flavors. The big flavors I got from this beer were fruit and clove and lots of good yeasty flavors. I really enjoyed this beer, and would recommend it as a Belgian style beer with a lot of good funk. I think it might be a little clove-overpowered, but I enjoy cloves so it worked for me (clove cigarettes...mmmm). The Matilda comes in a 4-pack for like 8 or 9 bucks, which is pricey but it is a good return when you factor in that each bottle is 7% ABV.

Duvel - Hey, I finally am getting around to knock this one out. Duvel is THE Belgian Strong Ale. This beer is surprisingly subtle, and I expected it to taste a lot like the Goose Island Matilda. But it doesn't. Duvel has some sour notes, some clove notes, apple notes, and a good malty/creamy mouthfeel with a clean dry finish. This is really a complex beer, and it has a lot of flavors that remind me of a pale lager...and then bam! You get the wild yeasts and the sugars. At 8.5% ABV, Duvel is a beer that will fuuuuuuuuuuckkkkkkk you up! Obviously this is a classy and expensive beer, so it really is not meant to be consumed as a beer pong beverage. Still, I picked up a 750ml bottle (which is like 2.11 beers), and at 8.5% ABV it is about the same as drinking 3-4 beers in one sitting! Very nice!

The head on the Duvel is white and looks all pillow-like. The body is golden and gives off the impression that this is some macro light beer. I guess that is why the beer is named "Devil." The surprise comes from the taste which is huge. Overall, I am loving Duvel and I think I would say this is one of the better beers I have had thus far.

[Professor S]

VERY good scotch. Sweet, rich, and fruity without being cloying to the palate. Not unlike good Cognac. I will buy this by the bottle from now on because one glass at Stokesay Castle in Reading, PA cost me $26. The only part of this scotch that disappointed me was that the barley flavors (a personal favorite) were lost in the fruit of the sherry casks this scotch is aged in, but this is a minor complaint because the cost of this age dictates that it is a special occasion spirit and not an everyday scotch.

Does anyone have a scotch they DEMAND I try before Memorial Day. I hang up my scotch for the season come Memorial Day. It is unseemly to partake in brown liquor over the summer months, and I switch to gin.

[KillerGremlin]

I've been getting comfy with a glass of Johnny Walker Black Label tonight. It's pretty smokey and in my opinion a bit harsh, but I am hardly a whiskey connoisseur. It is drinkable, and it tastes much better at warm temperatures. I get lots of smoke, some beefy flavors, some burnt grape and orange flavors, and lots of smokey whiskeyness. I also get some good ol' burn from the booze, which is maybe a bit disappointing since 40% is not the ceiling as far as proof is concerned.



I also found Unibroue's Trois Pistoles for 7.49 at the store the other day so I picked up a 750ml bottle of that (approximately 24~26 ounces). The bottle artwork is fucking epic:

It's a Belgian dark strong ale, and had some good clove notes going on with a lot of malty goodness (even some chocolate as it warmed up) and lots of approaching dark fruit notes like cherry and raisins. It was not as good as Duvel I don't think, but they are slightly different styles.

[Professor S]

Originally Posted by KillerGremlin

I've been getting comfy with a glass of Johnny Walker Black Label tonight. It's pretty smokey and in my opinion a bit harsh, but I am hardly a whiskey connoisseur. It is drinkable, and it tastes much better at warm temperatures. I get lots of smoke, some beefy flavors, some burnt grape and orange flavors, and lots of smokey whiskeyness. I also get some good ol' burn from the booze, which is maybe a bit disappointing since 40% is not the ceiling as far as proof is concerned.

As I try out more and more scotch, I find Johnny Walker Black to be entirely overrated. There are a lot of whiskeys that blow it away at a similar price. Don't get me wrong, I think Black is a good whiskey, but not to the extent that validates it's popularity. For only a few dollars more I've been drinking Highland Park 12 year and there is no comparison.

[KillerGremlin]

Originally Posted by Professor S

As I try out more and more scotch, I find Johnny Walker Black to be entirely overrated. There are a lot of whiskeys that blow it away at a similar price. Don't get me wrong, I think Black is a good whiskey, but not to the extent that validates it's popularity. For only a few dollars more I've been drinking Highland Park 12 year and there is no comparison.

I'll check that out. I have no doubt that Johnny Walker Black is overrated, but it happened to be available so I tried it. It was good and smokey, although not the smoothest scotch I've had. I like the idea of trying lots of whiskey, but I'm less thrilled about having a collection of 20 bottles. For one, the stuff is pricey...and two, the stuff takes a while to drink (unless you are an alcoholic ). I think sample pack type things exist, so I may pursue those.

Also, I'm on a Belgian Ale kick as I picked up another 750ml bottle of Duvel. Damn this stuff is classy. Cloves, apples, grapes, grassy yeast, creamy malt goodness, and earthy notes. This is like Europe's fuck you to all the pale ales out there (except that I enjoy pale ales, so meh).