I’m drinking pink beer.   This is what’s at the forefront of my mind as I stare at the undeniably hot pink head on this traditional Belgian lambic.  The lambic style is defined by the use of wild yeast for fermentation and flavoring with fruit rather than (and not in addition to) hops.  Framboise is a raspberry lambic (thus the distinctive coloration) and a low alcohol (2.5% ABV) full-on dessert beer;  virtually all of the the suggested pairings from Lindemans are desserts.  There’s raspberry all the way through from nose to finish.  The nose also has some yeasty notes, the middle is slightly fizzy and sweet which fades to a surprisingly tart finish.  There’s a bit of lingering sourness as well, which I attribute to the yeast.  If you don’t like bitter, hoppy beers, this may a beer you want to try but it’s definitely a special occasion brew, not an everyday drink, and it won’t appeal to everybody.   All in all, I think it’s a relatively complex and fairly nice example of a true lambic.

I picked up an assorted pack from the Flying Dog Brewery from Maryland, and I’m cracking the IPA first.  There isn’t much of a nose…Just maybe a bit of sweet orange. The middle has a more orange and grapefruit, leading into some heavy earthy hops, and finishing with some bitterness from both the hops and some grapefruit peel.   It’s definitely on the bitter side for an IPA (which I personally like) but be warned if you don’t, and it really could use something to balance it out in any case.

I love pulling out a bottle of Chimay, because it makes using my Chimay glass feel so official    The Chimays are Trappist ales, and I’ve previously reviewed Chimay’s Grande Reserve Ale, which is a Belgian Strong Dark Ale.  Tonight I’m drinking Première, an Abbey Dubbel ale.  It still has the fruity undertones of Belgian yeast, but this one isn’t primarily cherry like the Grande Reserve, but peach and apricot, more complex and not as sweet.   The Grande Reserve is probably my favorite Chimay, but this is still an outstanding example of a Trappist ale, and not a beer to miss.

The theme for Dogfish Head Craft Brewery’s Pangaea ale is that it’s a world beer.  To that end, it’s brewed with ingredients taken from each of the seven continents.  (Yes, even Antarctica which provides some, though I imagine certainly not all, of the water.)  What that means to you and me, is that we have another spicy beer from Dogfish Head.   The nose is heavy with Belgian yeast and ginger.  There is cherry and orange in a malty middle, which fades to a slightly bitter but not particularly hoppy finish.  It’s another interesting and unusual beer from Dogfish Head.  Unfortunately, it’s also on hiatus, so it’s unlikely you’ll find it available in the near future.

Brew Free! Or Die IPA from 21st Amendment Brewery of San Francisco  California is a canned beer that is worth buying just for the artwork on the cans, and on the cardboard box that a six-pack comes in.   Now, I know that the beer needs to stand for itself, but the packaging is seriously cool.   So now that we have that out of the way, how is the beer?   Well, in a word, excellent.   It’s a traditional IPA, with citrus and floral notes in the nose, orange and a bit of bread in the middle, and seriously biter hops in the grassy finish.   It’s clean, well-executed, and the transitions are well balanced with nothing overwhelming or under-stated.  My verdict is that this is a really good IPA.

My last experience with Chateau Jiahu was disappointing.   A manufacturing flaw meant that the bottle hadn’t sealed properly, so by the time I got it home it was flat, spoiled, and undrinkable.   Not this time however.   I’ve finally found another bottle and to my delight, this one poured perfectly, fizzy and fresh.   The nose on this beer isn’t strong, with just a hint of yeast and orange.   The middle however, is a different story.  The heavy carbonation makes the taste of the grapes explode on your tongue, the sweetness still accentuated by the addition of honey.  It’s a heavy beer, sticky and lingering, fading away to a final note of alcohol.  It’s a big beer too, at 10% ABV.  This is the closest I’ve ever had to champagne in a beer.   This is definitely a dessert beer, and a good one.

It’s that time of year.  Spring is in the air, and the spring seasonals are starting to hit the retail shelves.  Dig Pale Ale is a spring seasonal offering from New Belgium Brewing, who are most famous for an amber ale named Fat Tire.  This is the first time I’ve had Dig, and it’s a little more subdued than the average pale ale, with less pronounced bitterness from the hops.   The nose isn’t overwhelming, with hints of pine and lemon.  The middle is strongly bready and chewy, and the finish is where the bitterness of the hops really shows up, with more pine and lemon zest.   It’s a pleasant take on a pale ale, bitter but less bitter than some, and I quite like it.

The name says it all.   This beer is about chocolate, and more chocolate.  This black as night stout has a dark brown head.  The scent is that of sweet chocolate cake.  The middle is predominately semi-sweet chocolate, and the finish is bitter chocolate and the bite of alcohol.  This beer is chocolate from start to finish. As a side note, it received gold medals at the World Beer Championships in 2009 and 2010, according to Rogue.  That said, it’s not my favorite.  A bit too much alcohol bite in the finish for my taste.

Yet another unique beer from the folks at Dogfish Head in Delaware    Red & White is a Belgian witbier with a twist, (surprising?) being brewed with coriander, orange peels, and pinot noir grapes, then aged in pinot noir and oak barrels.   This is a big beer, at 11% ABV.  The orange is predominant in the nose.  The middle is where the coriander comes through, with more orange, and then it transitions into the grapes and a heavy oak flavor in the finish.  The oak is a bit more overstated than I’d prefer, but this is a super interesting and very complex beer, and a nice treat.

I’m coming to the end of my Sam Adams Winter selection, and to the end of the winter seasonals, in fact.  Porters are often hugely malty, but the Samuel Adams Holiday Porter is less in your face.   It’s still definitely a malt-driven beer, but it relies on the malts to add flavor and texture and complexity in subtler ways than a big shouty look-at-all-my-maltiness porter.  The nose is sweet,  the middle is milky and smooth, and it fades to a bitter-sweet chocolate finish.   This is really a nice beer.