Negra Modelo (MEX)

How do you like that beer? You know, they brought German Burgermeisters over here back in about 18 hundred and something. Who knows? Long time ago. Some of the best beer in the world comes from Mexico.
-Bring Me the Head of Alfredo Garcia

In fact, it doesn't, Benny, but it is true about the German (or Austrian) connection to Mexican beer. Negra Modelo is, IMO, probably the nest Mexican beer readily available in the US. Still, this isn't a dark lager to match the best of Vienna. It looks pretty: clear amber rather than pale yellow. And there's both more malt and more hops than in a Corona or Pacifica. Still, it's pretty light, and buried beneath too much carbonation. At the end, you can just barely taste some roasted coffee maltiness. There isn't enough, though. Then again, a proper Vienna lager probably wouldn't suit Chile Rellenos or an afternoon at the beach.

Activity at High Falls

High Falls Brewing of Rochester, NY-- makers of Genesee and JW Dundee's -- have recently let go of their brewer and partnered with a new marketing firm. Something's afoot, but I'm not sure what.

High Falls/Genesee is one of the old regionals trying to stay alive in the contemporary landscape. JW Dundee's is no great shakes of a line, but at least pointed them in the direction of craft beer. Will they become more committed to craft beer, or give up on it entirely?

Sprecher Mai Bock/Black Bavarian (WIS)

I hadn't seen anything from this Milwaukee based brewer before, so I wonder if they just began distributing to Western New York. They are evidently more renowned for their soda than for their beer. The 16-ounce bottles ($8.50 a 4-pack) have twist off caps, unusual for a craft brewer, but unlike macro bottles, they're really hard to open.

Mai Bock: This is a seasonal brew, a robust pale lager. It pours a lightly hazy orange-yellow with a weak head. Overall, it's a bit more malty than hoppy, although there's definite bitterness along with the bready sweetness. The neck label claims a "distinctive flowery aroma and a crisp hop flavor," which is mostly correct, though I'm not sure if it comes across as entirely crisp. It has a rich body, nice soft carbonation, and a very long aftertaste. I like this beer a good deal, but it might not win over lager skeptics. It's probably more suitable for early, cool spring than for sunny May days.


Black Bavarian: Another lager, this appears to be one of their most respected offerings. I like schwarzbiers a lot, with Sam Adams providing my current favorite. Sprecher's take is smokier. It starts out sweet, has some spiciness and bitterness, but is quickly overtaken by pretty heavy roasted malts. It reminds me a bit of Saranac Chocolate Amber Lager in that respect, or perhaps some stouts I've had. I'm not enthralled with smokiness, which is a strike against Sprecher for me. On the plus side, it has the same appealing soft carbonation as the Mai Bock. Black Bavarian is a well-made beer, and I think it's a question of what you're looking for.

BrewDog and the Internet

Scotland's Daily Record has an article about BrewDog and their reliance on the internet beer community. After initially failing to generate any interest in Scotland, they turned their attention online

Thankfully, the pair [the brewery co-owners] had access to thousands of more appreciative beer drinkers on the internet.

After selling no beer at all for four months, the two pals decided to focus on the export market and began sending samples out to "beer bloggers" around the world.

In a matter of weeks, BrewDog was the hottest name on the lips of those in the know in the world of beer and, before the duo knew where they were, they were being lauded by fans and connoisseurs around the world.

Nice story, but beer blogger triumphalism must be tempered by the fact they put "beer bloggers" in quotation marks.

Butternuts Snapperhead IPA (NY)

So says the website:

Our India Pale Ale packs typical IPA balls but strikes better balance between
dryness and drinkability. It’s every bit as rich but a little less better than
other American interpretations of the breed

I always assumed "IPA balls" were the bitterness, but apprently not. The above is accurate, though. Snapperhead pours hazy orange-copper with a slight head. This tastes a lot like other American IPAs, but without the pine or grapefruit hit at the end. It's not a pale ale -- it does bring a full flavor -- and it's not an English IPA. It's more like an American IPA that seems unfinished. There's a lot of mostly grainy malt, and some hops too, but really bitter. You could make a case that this one's balanced and all the other IPAs are not. Overall, I like it, but it's sure to piss off a lot of the hopheads.

2008 World Beer Cup

Winners from the 2008 World Beer Cup in San Diego are here. You can't help but raise an eyebrow at some of the medal winners -- there are 91 categories and, of course, not every brewery in the world enters -- but the tastings are blind, which is more than most of us usually do

Natty Light won a bronze. A local beer (for me), JW Dundee's Doppelbock, won a shocking bronze in a tougher category. It made the local paper. Another upstate New York beer won a silver: Saranac Pale Ale. Admittedly, there are three or four pale ale categories. Elsewhere, Dogfish Head's Midas Touch finished third in its category behind Blue Moon Honey Moon and Michelob Honey Lager. Take that, microbewery!

Left Hand Jackman's Pale Ale (CO)

Another selection from Colorado's Left Hand seems like a good choice at the end of an abnormally hot April afternoon.

This one's a looker, nice and clear golden with an off-white head. The brewery says they used Cascade and Centennial hops, and dry-hopped with Mt. Hood. This would suggest a mixture of citrus and floral, I think, which is pretty much what you get. It comes across as mild, but not in the sense of being tasteless. Instead, it's a blend of hop flavors rather than the dominant grapefruit bitterness present in some APAs. Jackman's is also slightly grainy and sweet. This is a solid APA, nice and crisp, but not what some would want from the style. On a warm day, I'd rather drink this than the brewer's pilsener, but their darker beers seem to be better.

Erdinger Hefe-Weizen Dark (GER)

This is now the third Erdinger wheat beer I've tried. I thought the two others were decent enough, probably not the best of Germany, but I bought this because it was on sale (a drink by date of 04-2008 being the reason).

My understanding is that it isn't entirely typical of the style. "A moderately dark, spicy, fruity, malty, refreshing wheat-based ale," says BJCP, which isn't too far off. Erdinger is in fact dark brown, with some lightness appearing only around the edges. The taste is mostly hefe, but with some caramel sweetness covering up the banana/clove. "A roasted malt character is inappropriate" is where we get into trouble. The finish of this beer is clearly of roasted malts, providing a light mocha flavor. If this is wrong for the style, it's also my favorite part of the beer. My least favorite is the carbonation, which is effervescent, but excessive. Probably this isn't incorrect, but just seems so because it doesn't fit the wayward taste. Ultimately, this doesn't come across as a heavy beer, but seems to want to be more than just refreshing.

Overall, I like this more than either of the other Erdinger's I've tasted. Checking out the rating it sites, it looks like Weihenstephaner makes a great dunkelweizen, so I'll have to try that.