red beer and yellow sky

I almost missed a beer day!  Can you believe it?  I put off getting more beer all week, thinking the further away places had later hours on Saturday anyway.  That's what Google told me!  Google lies!  My first stop was closed, only open in the mornings on Saturdays, but the bar/store La Buena Pinta doesn't miss a chance to collect customers.  I picked up Spanish beers, getting ready for Beer Week, although maybe I should have grabbed a German one too...Film Fest and Beer Week will overlap.  The other thing was the crowds.  There's an important soccer game tonight and people were gathering at strategic locations to see it with their fellow fans.  La Buena Pinta and its environs is not exactly one of those.  So, onto the bus we piled.  And at every stop, more piled on and few got off.  Since I got on at the first stop I was fortunate to get a seat, and in a place where I could see a hot guy, with his friends on their way to one of those strategic locations I bet.  A nice view makes a long, crowded journey more bearable.

Anyway, one of my finds this evening is a nice red IPA, local brew.  I've seen the bottles before, but I don't remember ever trying one.  Today's the day, then.  Mad Red sounds like it should be a good pun, but the brewery is Mad Brewing, and it's a red ale.  Actually, maybe it's a great pun.

No flash - the color comes out better

It's a rusty red ale, lightly headed and a bit pungent.  Like some other reds, it has a top note of sweetness, maybe even a hint of cinnamon, but the base flavor is still ale-y bitter.  One might think a beer so snappy wouldn't be as welcome on a chilly and rainy day, but it's actually very nice.  Refreshing, and energizing in the face of drippy streets.  There's kind of an odd aftertaste after about half a glass, something similar to some herb I can't quite identify.  It's not as spicy as saisons can be, and I don't always appreciate that anyway, but it is a pleasant little tweak.  I'm more than satisfied with my pick today.  It's even stopped raining.  The sky gods must approve.

Supplier: La Buena Pinta
Prince: ~€2.70 (should I learn to demand receipts?)