heavier than a feather

On the seventh day of Beermas I picked out for me
Hopefully unendangered feathers
A laid out insomniac
One secret promise
A possibly chatty barnyard animal
A random French reference
A bird that's not a pigeon
And a flamingo with mangoes and beets

Man, those relevant dark beers are so few and far between.  I might have to be looking for those all spring to make up for it at this rate.  Not that IPA is a bad choice, especially with Naparbier.  They do some good stuff up there.  While boxing isn't swimming, we can imagine those feathers came from swans.  And then everybody had a swim to cool off after.

This is a beer that just looks like a beer, just that perfect golden color, fizzy white foam on top.  It smells like an IPA for sure, less tangy than Insomnia but definitely citrusy.  While sweet and orangey in taste, there is a little balancing bitter underneath that gives the beer some heft.  It's very easy to drink, although there is a tiny punch of sour at the very end of the sip.  Not dull for sure, but not a show off either.

Supplier: Heneket
Price: ~€4

lighter than sleep

On the sixth day of Beermas I picked out for me
A laid out insomniac
One secret promise
A possibly chatty barnyard animal
A random French reference
A bird that's not a pigeon
And a flamingo with mangoes and beets

Like I said, there's a lot of birds in this song, and not so many birdy beers.  This might be a bit of a stretch, but when you can't sleep all you can do it lay yourself down and hope.  So, there is a connection to the action in this case.  Hah!  Give me something better, I defy you!  Anyway, Insomnia NEIPA is a collaboration beer, between (UK) Salopian brewery and (NZ) Yeastie Boys, so some of these things can have quite a long reach.

It's a little darker in color than some NEIPAs, but it has that happy, mandariny smell.  Also quite cloudy, might be all the yeast swimming around.  Nice head at first, but it does wilt in a few minutes, leaving a small covering of foam.  Sharp, stabby-sweet mandarin flavor, very citrusy but juicy, as I've come to associate NEIPAs with.  Possibly a little too light in flavor and feel for nearly the end of the year in the Northern Hemisphere, although at 7.2% it's certainly warming.

Sorry it's fuzzy, but I was shocked to see live yeast labeled suitable for vegans.  Won't someone think of the unicellular critters!

Supplier: La Birratorium
Price: €6.10

better than gold

On the fifth day of Beermas I picked out for me
One secret promise
A possibly chatty barnyard animal
A random French reference
A bird that's not a pigeon
And a flamingo with mangoes and beets

At first I thought it was the beer that was the Golden Promise, but it turns out it's the brewery.  This RIPA is actually Best Secret.  Name still works, though.  Interestingly, the brewery is based in Queens, but as one of those "nomad" breweries they actually get their stuff made all over the place.  This one looks like it was made in Zaragoza.

A good whiff of IPA comes out when the cap comes off.  It's dark gold, a little cloudy, good head, very fluffy.  The taste is pretty grainy, a little sweet.  Kind of a bitter aftertaste, but not too much.  There's also a little sour hiding in there, something mildly citrusy.  It feels a little dusty, like some unfiltered brews can be.  It doesn't claim to be unfiltered, although it has the look as well.  It's a fairly heavy feel for an IPA, maybe the rye makes gives it more weight, and it feels just fine for early winter evenings.

Supplier: Cervecissimus
Price: €3.40

clearer than a bird call

On the fourth day of Beermas I picked out for me
A possibly chatty barnyard animal
A random French reference
A bird that's not a pigeon
And a flamingo with mangoes and beets

This song sure has a lot of birds.  Not even done with them yet!  It might seem like I'm stretching a little bit with this one, and maybe I am, but come on!  How can you hear Polly and not think of a parrot?  And that's a bird that has no trouble calling.  Loka Polly is new this year, based in a stable in Wales, with colorful cans and no-nonsense names on their beers.  This one is Mosaic DDH Pale, again veering back into light colored territory, but a DDH ale ought to have plenty to say.

Immediately aromatic, citrusy and spicy, maybe a hint of pine.  While clear, the beer is a rich gold color, not washed out at all.  The head comes out fluffy white and sits around for awhile.  The flavor is a smack in the mouth, very bright and energetic, with a good heft of hops in it.  Naturally.  It doesn't have the extra bitter aftertaste that some super hoppy beers can get, although the initial taste is a little bit of a shock.  Even though it's stronger than you might expect from the smell, it's quite pleasant and fruity, along the lines of many IPAs.  It's not tropical though, there's more of a forest in it than a fruit basket.

Supplier: Be Hoppy
Price: €6.50

posher than French

On the third day of Beermas I picked out for me
A random French reference
A bird that's not a pigeon
And a flamingo with mangoes and beets

What's more French than Paris?  No avian references here, but you can't have everything.  What I can have is a good dark stout.  It's a collaboration of Sori Brewing and Brouwerij Kees, so a couple of good northern influences for a good, black beer.  We'll Always Have Paris is a little exotic, with dates, coconut and tonka beans, but sometime in the past Paris, or indeed France in general, must have been pretty exotic itself.

Finally, I got some real stout to deal with!  Not much head though, it fizzles out right away.  It smells heavy, sweet and sticky, like a lot of stouts with chocolate or fruity flavors.  The taste isn't super strong right away, but it has a little downhill roll of light sweetness to a dirtier sort of bittersour.  I guess there's a hint of date in the background, not too sweet by itself.  There is that idea of fruit, even if it's not evident right up front.  The aroma was sweeter than the beer, I'd say, but by no means am I complaining.  It is a little bit sticky, but the balance of flavors is interesting, filling, and pleasant on a dark December night.

Hold on there, I am very serious!  About beer, anyway

Supplier: Más Que Cervezas
Price: €4.26

faster than a turtle (dove)

On the second day of Beermas I picked out for me
A bird that's not a pigeon
And a flamingo with mangoes and beets

Well, for some reason I thought I might feel like an ale early in my Beermas.  That was before I had gone through that calendar.  Anyway, Bailandera is an alright brew, there's been success before, so I probably shouldn't be worried.  It's a session ale, so pretty light all around.  Looking at the label now, maybe I could have used it for ladies dancing, since the woman seems to be having quite the time in her wheat field.

Oh, what have I gotten myself into, allowing ales into my Beermas?  After all that in Advent...It looks very much like some of those pilsners, in spite of not being filtered.  I guess it is a little bit cloudy.  Head behaves about the same way too.  Sunnier scent, though, a little citrusy tang to it.  Light and citrusy taste at first, but it quickly dives down into a breadier bitter feeling and finishes rather sour.  In spite of the lightness in appearance and first impression of flavor, there is a definite body behind the beer, rounding out the feeling in the mouth.  I don't know if I'd have two of these in one sitting, but it does give you a little to think about.

Supplier: Cerevisia
Price: €3

bigger than a partridge

On the first day of beermas I picked out for me
A flamingo with mangoes and beets

It's finally arrived after weeks of piddly light beers, Beermas!  Now I get to make the decisions, so there's a little more probability of my preferred styles.  Also, some new stuff.  For the first day I decided on Brewski Flamingo, a Berliner weiss with mango and beetroot, so I got the fruit and the bird in there.  Not a partridge or a pear, but what do you want from me?  As far as I know nobody's actually making beers to go with the song specifically.  We have to be a little creative.  And flexible.

This really looks like sparkling grapefruit drink.  The head barely stays for a second.  It smells a little winey, fitting for a fruity beer.  I'm expecting a wine or lambic taste too, but that's not quite what I get.  There's a sour fruit part for sure, but it's dry and earthy as well.  There's a little melony sweet towards the bottom of the taste.  It tastes...healthy.  Like this should be some fruity energy drink that isn't sugary enough to cause problems, but has enough sweetness to be palatable.  The label almost exhorts the drinker to be unique and forceful about it, a sure way to not make friends at Christmas.  Better to just quietly drink your beet beer and let everybody think what they want.

Supplier: La Buena Pinta
Price: €4.90

Dec. 24 - Apostel Bräu

It's the end of my calendar!  All things must end, I suppose.  Tomorrow starts Beermas, however, and so we are reminded that every end is also a beginning.  The Apostel Bräu appears promising, as those more religiously themed beers tend to have some weight behind them.  Must be something about monastery life that makes people feel the need for powerful liquids.  Oddly, the can on one side has the normal "Gebraut nach den deutschen Reinheitsgebot" while the other side warns of the dangers of excess alcohol to health.  In Spanish, no less.

So, for the finale I get another transparent vaguely yellow brew.  It's so...unimpressive to behold.  The head is fairly resistant, takes a while to fizz away.  Not much aroma, just a hint of grain.  It's kind of a suggestion of beer.  The first taste is smooth and somewhat heavy, much more than the color would have you expect.  It's not exactly sour, but definitely not sweet.  The aftertaste lays down a little bitter at the back of the tongue.  It's not bad, I guess.  I feel like the Christmas Eve beer should have been more wintery, or at least a black beer, but you get what you get sometimes.  And starting tomorrow I get what I want to get, within certain limitations.  Nah, I get what I want to get, I make the rules for Beermas!

Dec. 23 - Steininger

Sighing heavily, I get out the next-to-last calendar beer and it's a light one.  Steininger Hefe Weissbier to be precise.  Now, a weisse is probably more interesting than the lagers and pilsners that have rolled out so far, so maybe it won't be so bad.  At least the can doesn't give potentially false promises of luxury.

It's cloudy gold, so at least not completely transparent.  Gives a look of consistency that some of the past beers just didn't have.  Head looks good at first but fizzles out pretty quickly.  Just a touch of sweet wheatiness in the aroma, nothing sour or stereotypically "beery".  Actually rather sour in taste at first, leaves an impression of being a cider more than a beer.  Still, there's that normal wheat beer aftertaste, but not as heavy as I get from, say, Paulaner.  It does have some weight, leaves a little bit of something behind it on the palate, so I would say it's a bit better for winter (which we are officially in now!) than those other light beers.  Gives you a little oomf in your glass to feel a little extra warmth.

Dec. 22 - Faxe

Well, not appointed to the Danish court, but it appears Faxe is a truly Danish beer.  Thor in his winged helmet glares out from the can, maybe wondering why he's attached to a lager instead of mead or ale.

Still transparent, bubbly, quickly diminishing head, perhaps a darker shade of gold, though.  Thin, beery smell, something kind of floral poking around.  It's a bit sour at first but quickly descends into bitterness, more like a "proper" beer.  Something about it is tough, a mouthful of flavor, but not exactly unpleasant.  It has some rustic quality, a beer that you might be drinking around a bonfire on a snowy camping trip.  Still waiting for one more black beer, though.

Dec. 21 - Bear Beer

I'm not quite sure what to expect from Bear Beer.  It looks pretty slick, and it is a lager, so maybe I shouldn't get my hopes up.  Now, it is a beer "by appointment to the Royal Danish Court", so maybe I'm being a little too judgemental up front.  Only one way to find out, I guess.

Very standard beer appearance, light gold color and white fluffy head.  Like with pretty much all these light beers, the head fades quickly.  Very slightly sweet scent, but hardly detectable at all.  Not as sweet as some lagers, a little hard to pin down what it really is.  There is an initial sweetness, with a very light touch, and no weirdness beyond that.  There is practically no aftertaste at all, certainly no change to sour or bitter.  Once more, it's an acceptable drinking beer, but I'm such a demanding asshole that I'm not satisfied with that.

Dec. 20 - Mecklenburger

Well, one more pilsner I guess.  Why not?  The Mecklenburger Pilsener can is a festive red, although not as rustic or busy or modern as others.

Ech, kind of a dog's breath smell from the can when it gets popped open.  Maybe a little healthier color than yesterday's, white, fluffy head that leaves a nice if not very thick top.  Sour at first, and then a kind of sweetness oozes up.  Although I thought the aroma meant a bitter beer, it really isn't bitter at all.  Not too sticky, though, goes down pretty quickly.  Another beer that isn't bad, but not really anything special.  Makes the special ones more special...?

Dec. 19 - Hansa

Oh man, yet another pilsner!  It's a bright and active looking can, though.  A nice sailing ship gives a feeling of movement and adventure.  I wonder if Hansa Pils will live up to that impression.

Sharp pilsy scent on opening the can.  There's that light and transparent beer again, head quickly disappearing.  The taste, however, is a surprise, given the track record of these beers.  It's bold, sharp, bitter but not overly so, just a tad sour at the end.  It does build up a little bit of maltiness, even as a pilsner, although it's just a mild feeling in the middle of the drink.  Some stickiness builds up too, but overall it's a light but flavorful beer.  A pleasant surprise indeed.

Dec. 18 - Eichbaum Sünnbörg

Finally we get to something darker!  A real black beer.  This can has a little story on the side in craft style, insisting that malt is the basis of the best beer.  Sünnbörg looks more Swedish than German, but Scandinavia has been producing some stellar stouts in the last few years, so maybe it shouldn't be surprising.

Oh boy, oh boy, looks the right color, a little lighter than regular stouts and porters.  A little malty aroma, but nothing too heavy.  It's an interesting flavor, only slightly sweet with a touch of licorice.  There's a little bit of smoke hiding in the background too.  Some sourness develops giving the beer a fruity touch.  It's not a sticky feeling drink, also pretty clean after the mouthful.  The complexity of the flavor gives me hope for the future, but I don't think there are too many black beers in the box.

Dec. 17 - Eichbaum Premium

Next up in Eichbaum Presents Advent, Premium!  Not Premium lager, pilsner, ale or anything specific, just Premium Bier.  Okay, then.  It's a fairly festive can, with that nice shiny red and the horse drawn sleigh.  I wonder if premium is better than luxurious?

Well, it looks pretty much the same as yesterday's, maybe a fluffier head.  But, same color, same transparency.  Just a little more aroma.  Sort of sweet, a little malty.  Also honey right up front with this one, reminds me more of mead than of beer.  I think it's more cloying than yesterday, a little stickier.  It sours a bit as it gets warmed up, but it's still a really sweet beer.  And not like a chocolate stout or porter, or any of those fruity ales, it's pretty much sugar water.  Okay, fermented sugar water, since it does give you a little of that alcohol heat in the cold of the evening.  Still, I would rather have had a stout.

Dec. 16 - Eichbaum Landbier

Well, this is a more lively can, with the mustard yellow tractor in the wheat field.  The other landbier was pretty good, so I'm feeling hopeful.  Yet again, it's an Eichbaum product, promising enjoyment in the shade of the oak.

Very foamy and extremely light colored.  I'm a little disappointed in that.  Also barely detectable smell, I think if I didn't know it was beer I wouldn't guess.  Much more flavorful than the aroma would suggest, heavy on the sweet.  It starts out just mild, like a sweeter lager, but builds quickly into a honey flavor that sits for just a moment between the tongue and palate.  As you might imagine from the ghostly color, it is a very clean drink, little to no aftertaste, zipping right down the gullet.  Like so many of these light beers it isn't bad, but it's not what I would prefer in the winter.  They would be much more refreshing and enjoyable in the summer months.  Maybe this calendar was meant to go to Australia.

Dec. 15 - Ureich

Well, it's back to lager, but this is a luxurious lager!  Says so on the can.  There are some nice hops on the side to make you think it's well flavored, but we'll see.  Ureich, you have a challenge ahead of you.

I think it's even weaker in color than yesterday's, again with a resistant head.  Barely any smell, though, just the tiniest hint of bitter and a whisper of pepper.  I swear I think I'm getting pepper.  That would be something of a luxury.  The taste, however, is regular lager, with a big round start that flattens out into a grainy sweetness, and trails off with a dash of bitterness down the throat.  Even flavor from start to finish, a good drinking lager, but the pepper is lacking in the taste, and it's not what I would call luxurious.  A good stout, now that's luxury!  Or even a strong IPA.

Meh, not quite

Dec. 14 - Dominikaner

Oh maaaaaan, my swear journal will get started because of this advent calendar I think.  Another pilsner has popped up, still "premium beer", but pilsner nonetheless.  Dominikaner Pils.

Once again, that clear, light colored liquid, although a pretty good head on it.  White, fluffy, sticks around a while.  There's a mild sour-bitter aroma, something that shouldn't surprise when you have a pilsner.  The flavor is a bit sweeter than other pilsners, with a hint of grain, kind of a dusty aftertaste.  It would be nice if some bitter would kick in.  It's refreshing, anyway, but a little light for my tastes, especially at this time of year.

Dec. 13 - Der Jäger aus Kurpfalz

Well, doesn't this can look busy?  Now we have another wheat beer, although not my favorite, it's a welcome break from the blandness of the pilsners.  This is another Eichbaum beer, so I guess this calendar was an agreement among just a few friends.  I'm already calculating how to get one from Beer Geek another year.

Not much for head, this one, but a more mouth-filling appearance than the recent beers.  It's a dusty opaque, dark gold, looks like a nice wheat.  Slightly tangy aroma, goes with the territory.  Not a bad mouthful.  Starts somewhat sweet but rolls down into a sour that one expects from the wheat beers.  It hangs around a little, not quite as clean as those blah pilsners, but inoffensive aftertaste.  On the whole, not bad at all, and a bright spot in a field of mediocrity.

Dec. 12 - 5,0 Original

5,0 is back in a can reminiscent of Coca-cola.  It looks like the same red anyway.  The can makes a lot of promises about saved costs and preserved quality, and emphasizes its export status...which does not bode well.

No polar bears here

Man, it's even lighter and thinner looking than yesterday's.  Pretty good head, though, doesn't disappear too fast.  I'm not even sure what it tastes like; there's something there, but it's so subtle and so delicate that precise description fails me.  If anything it's on the sweet side, absolutely not bitter.  No aftertaste either, goes right down.  Out of mouth, out of mind.  I could compare it with (shudder) Mahou, if pressed.

Dec. 11 - Astra Urtyp

The can of Astra Urtyp is simple, but with an attention calling heart towards the top and a barely camouflaged skull and crossbones at the bottom, not exactly boring.  "Brewed with love", they say.  Again, very modern and industrial, no folksy details or anecdotes.  I'm not hopeful that it will be anything special.

Yet another light yellow, typical beer-looking beer.  About the same look, and aroma, as yesterday.  Very typical light beer flavor, mostly just bubbly bitter.  There's a small aftertaste with a round, dusty sweetness, but nothing too impressive.  Basic beer...beeeyatch.

Dec. 10 - Germania

Today I get Germania Premium Beer.  That's it.  That's all it's called.  I imagine it's a lager, or maybe yet another pilsner.  A somewhat nature goddess-like face adorns the can, but nothing else to clue in the potential drinker on what they're in for.  The beer list calls it a pilsner, so I guess I should look forward to another thin, mildly bitter drink.

Very light yellow, transparent again, pretty good head.  It starts out thick and fluffy and maintains a line on top of the liquid at all costs, it seems.  A little sour and grainy in aroma, which makes me lean towards lager.  Also sour at first sip, but it quickly smooths out into a mellower sweet with a bitter chaser.  It's okay, not as unimpressive as the first ones, but not as sharp as yesterday's or the day before's.  Still, must be some hope if at least a couple have been fine...maybe another black beer lurking in there?

Dec. 9 - Pilsator

Oh man, back to pilsners.  Well, the can makes Pilsator seem like wild and crazy kind, so maybe there will be something different.  This can is fairly simple in comparison to the last one, no stories, no history, just a menacing feline.

High, thin beery smell, like a light beer.  Also back to the light colored and transparent.  Head is fluffy white and disappears only slowly.  And woooow, does the bitter pack a punch!  It has none of the tropical fruitiness that bitter craft IPAs have, it's just a medicinal, herbal kind of bitter.  It's remarkably clean, actually, disappearing from the mouth in seconds after being swallowed, no lingering behind.  There is a hint of graininess that starts to try for some kind of aftertaste, but it's also rather fleeting.  Despite the initial shock of the strong bitterness, I think I prefer this beer to the first pilsners, just for the power of the flavor.  I'd still rather have Cibeles Imperial IPA, or even that Paderborner from last night, though.

Dec. 8 - Paderborner

At least the can of Paderborner Pilger has a little more going on than the others.  More like a craft beer package might be, with its spiel for the town and history on the back.  It's said to be a historical recipe, brewed with only the best and most carefully selected ingredients, to help pilgrims and hikers relax in the beautiful natural area of the beer's birth.  Big promises!

Nice look, a sort of dirty dark gold and not too transparent.  Good fluffy head, too.  Oddly sweet aroma, although definite beeriness underlying the apple-y sort of scent.  A quick shot of malt in a sip, good presence in the mouth; this one has some body to it as well.  Not much bitterness, but there is a hint of sour aftertaste.  A kind of aura of bitterness starts to make itself known after some minutes on the table, not quite overcoming the sweetness but definitely changing the sensation for roly-poly wandering to very direction-minded.  I guess that would keep those pilgrims moving on to their destination.

Dec. 7 - Blreor Schwarzbier

Finally, it's time for the dark side!  What we have today is a dark beer, or "black" as the can insists, so I might find something to connect with here.  The name is ... odd: Blreor.  I do not know where it comes from.  That's one nice thing about many craft beers, the tendency to tell stories on the labels.  There more industrial beers just don't have time for anything so folksy.

This does look like the German dunkles I remember, a nice dark brown and somewhat off-white head.  The head fizzles out pretty fast, though.  I do not get much aroma, maybe just a hint of sugar.  The taste starts sweet, blends into a sort of sour, and ends sweetly again.  It's a delicate flavor, but the beer itself feels heavier than the previous ones, a bit more body.  A little sticky too, even when cold.  More or less what I was drinking quite often in Vienna, at least as I recall.  Probably a bit lighter in flavor.  (Sigh)  That's where my Advent is going, it seems.  I guess it's just the first week, so maybe a big finish?

Dec. 6 - Stephans Bräu

Oh, now it's a premium lager!  I wonder if it will have more weight than the wheat beer?  Definitely expecting more than with the pilsners.  The can flashes four different writing systems, so it's definitely meant for export.  This is Stephans Bräu Premium Lager, from Mammut Getränke.  Weirdly, I cannot find the connection between the beer and the company, which I believe is an exporter, not a brewery.  Or maybe it is?  Some information says Stephans Bräu is made by Eichbaum, already a contestant in this game.  Anyway, let's get on with the lager tasting.

Couldn't find one with St. Nikolaus?

Well, it's back to lightly scented, lightly colored, glassy beer.  The head's alright, not real long-lasting, but it has a cling like the wheat beer.  It's oddly sour for a lager, taking a few seconds for any bitterness to come out.  Deep down there's some sweet grassiness, but it could easily go unnoticed with that sour on top of it.  While the level of sourness does diminish, it never really gets very bitter or that mildly sweet that many lagers tend to.  Again, not a bad beer to sit around on a sunny day with, but not what I would choose on a dark December night.  Actually, with a good meal it would be okay, since it doesn't have a striking flavor of its own to interfere with the taste of the food.  Right up there with Kingfisher!

Dec. 5 - Sankt Bartholomäus wheat

Finally, something that isn't a pilsner!  Maybe we're taking the next step, here.  It's another from Eichbaum, Sankt Bartholomäus Hefeweizen.  Like the rest, it insists that it is a premium quality beer, even though it has one side of ingredients printed in Chinese.  I guess that would be expected for export.

A pleasant wheaty smell comes off the opened can immediately, and the beer certainly has more character than the previous ones in appearance - dirty orange and opaque.  A good looking wheat.  The head dies back to a thin foam on top, but manages to hang on there.  The taste is quite mild, and without that snappy aftertaste that many have.  It's kind of a sweet-and-sour flavor, like a little sour gummy.  After a while beery bitterness has a chance to develop a little and add some texture.  Kind of a soft kitten of a beer; while it has a clear flavor and nothing to sharp around it, it also adds bit of backbone in the aftertaste and the look.  I'm still awaiting better, though, spoiled craft drinker that I am.

Dec. 4 - 5,0

So, I don't think the beers are shoved into the calendar randomly, I hold out hope that the black beers are being worked up to.  Just gotta get through the pilsners in the first few days.  Now I have something from 5,0, which might refer to the alcohol content of all the beers they produce?  The can at least looks like something more special and daring.  It's a "fan edition", in fact.  This is 5,0 Original, as opposed to the Export, which should come up a bit later in the month.

Another transparent, straw colored beer, dammit.  The head also disappears in a flash.  German lager-y aroma, a little sweet grain in there with a background of almost sour.  The taste is a blend of sweet, bitter, and sour, probably mostly sweet.  It's pretty solidly a German blond beer, but it has a little extra something in that sour part, although it still has a candy-like flavor to it.  It's more flavorful than those other pilsners, a little more attention grabbing.  Still a fairly tame beer, got that grainy taste overall, but it's more like what I've become used to and more pleasing to my palate.

Dec. 3 - Eichbaum

Number three is a lager, so getting away from the pilsner for the moment.  I do not know Eichbaum, of Mannheim, but they have a snappy promise on the front of aromatic hops.  It is a lager, not an ale, so we'll see.

I really see no difference from the last two in appearance, although the head isn't quite as resistant.  It's the same light yellow and transparent liquid.  Beerier smell, though.  Promise of a little more bitter.  Indeed, there is a heavier flavor than that Darguner especially, although it isn't especially strong.  The bitterness is extremely mild, and there is just a itty-bittiest tang in the aftertaste.  It's slightly more perky than the previous pilsners, but not nearly as in your face as what I've become accustomed to.  It's not such a bad beer, but sort of forgettable. 

Dec. 2 - Darguner

Another pilsner already?  I haven't heard of Darguner, though.  It's a premium pilsner, no maybe something a little stronger?

Even thinner looking than the Tuborg, but pretty good head.  It's a little stronger smelling, on the sweet side.  Practically the same taste, although it's flatter in terms of graininess.  There's a peculiar tingle on the back of the tongue that doesn't seem to have anything to do with flavor, but it's not an especially fizzy beer either.  I do get some of that same sour aftertaste as well, but again, more subdued.  If it sits for a while, there is some development of bitterness, but it's a very light touch.  I know there are some darker beers coming up, and I can hardly wait; pilsners are alright for summer, but I prefer something more substantial in the dark December!

Dec. 1 - Tuborg

"Drink and fun for everyone"?

So I have a German beer Advent calendar, and what is in the first box?  Tuborg.  Danish beer.  It is actually brewed under license in Germany though, so I guess that makes it alright.  I think I had some Tuborg in Copenhagen a few years ago.  I remember a kind of heavy, sweetish beer, good for seasonal sipping.  Let's see if the Advent can lives up to the memories.

It's a clear, light yellow pilsner, with a fluffy white head.  The very light aroma has a touch of toast and bitterness.  The flavor is hardly bitter at all, more mealy and slightly grainy.  It's a smooth tasting beer, but with a little ball of sweetness that builds up in the back of the mouth.  There's also some sour aftertaste, but everything stays at a low, mild level.  I think the Tuborg I had in Copenhagen wasn't the pilsner, hence the discrepancy in my memory.

reminiscing

Let's take a trip back a month or so, a time of beer promotion everywhere.  One thing that's been regular is Beermad, the craft beer fair in a tennis facility.  This time there were four-day passes for a reasonable price, so I determined to make the most of one.  The first day I only planned to be there an hour or so in the evening.

Being fall, I was hoping to find a good selection of stouts and porters, but alas.  We're in a trend of blond beers.  I did find a few, though, like Panda Doop Imperial Stout.  It's a dark, dark brown rather than true black, with a chocolatey aroma.  It has kind of a milk chocolate taste with a little twist of sour.  While substantial in texture it feels light down the throat, creamy and smooth.  The sour builds up a little bit over time but the chocolatey-ness remains.

As I hoped and dreamed, it's not crowded on a weekday night, so I have plenty of time for one more.  Another stout appears, Ziva 5.0 Russian Imperial Stout.  They had a regular and a bourbon barrel fermented version, and since I was going to leave after this I let myself be convinced that the barrel aged was worth it.  It looks awfully thick in the glass, with a thin head and a lot of poofiness underneath it.  It's also more dark brown than black, influence of the bourbon perhaps?  There is a strong, sweet bourbon smell, candy corn-like, but the taste is almost watery at first.  It does pick up on sweetness before bringing out the alcohol sting.  Despite the appearance, it's much thinner in body than Doop, with some grain or woodiness in the aftertaste.  After warming up a little it's salt-and-chocolate in flavor, which is an interesting shift.

Day Two begins with a lighter touch, 90 Varas Segovilla amber ale.  Cloudy orange, off-white and somewhat thin head, mildly beery smell.  It's bitter at first, then a hint of citrus.  Sweetness starts building little by little in this smooth and light textured beer, and it tickles the tongue from start to finish.

Then there was Enigma Tostada Roja.  It looks very similar to Segovilla, a little stronger in smell, maybe.  The taste is much sweeter, though, with really no bitter at all, but a good mouthful of grain.  That calms down over time and the beer loses a bit of power, but a happy and summery flavor remains.  It's a little cloudy, but ends up clearer than Segovilla, and might be a better beer for snacking than my first choice of the day.

Gotta get that flag up before Brexit!

Domus was in attendance with the cream drink that I've seen around for some time in the stores.  Might as well have a shot of it while I'm here.  It looks like milk, or medicine, but is very smooth and surprisingly sweet, leaving traces of licorice and vanilla behind it.

Peninsula Autumn Smash brought me back to regular beers, a lighter, happier drink after the sweetish shot.  Again, very similar to the previous beers in color, but the head is lighter and slightly more abundant.  It has a strong hoppy bitter, although not as citrusy as most IPAs.  Something keen and sharp develops in the background, not quite grassy, but along those lines.

I'm not quite sure why I didn't get a picture of the beer...

There was a whiskey stand among the beer this time and curiosity got the better of me.  They also have a pilsner, which I thought to try out.  It has a fairly typical appearance, very light straw color and fizzy white head.  It's a little cloudy, although that might actually be condensation on the glass.  It has barely any aroma and just a slightly beerish flavor, not as grainy as other pilsners.  Bitterness is barely perceptible, but present.  It's a good clean beer, ready to accompany food or talk, not being especially attention-grabbing by itself.  I took the opportunity to take a shot of the whiskey as well, first the Moonshine, which is only aged a couple of months (or was it weeks?).  Rather harsh to my palate.  There is also a whiskey distilled from stout that has a more expected color, and I find much smoother, woodier, and more flavorful.  If I was the kind of person that had whiskey at home, that would be my whiskey.

There's still plenty of time, so I stopped for an Arriaca.  Lots of light beers, including Centeno.  A lighter and whiter head than the other beers of the day, and a much citrusier aroma.  It has an attention-grabbing taste, citrus and bitter with hardly any sweet at all.  It's a light IPA kind of flavor.  A really refreshing choice when spicy food (such as papas al mohón) is involved.

Second half begins!  I can't resist trying a märzen on offer, Brew and Roll Camille II.  It's much lighter than what I'm familiar with as märzen, very much like Imperial IPA, but the aroma is heavy and malty and the taste grassy/grainy with a hint of bitter underneath.  While malty it doesn't get syrupy or terribly sweet, stays rather light actually, as befitting the color.

Now, The One IPA.  I got the spiel from the guy at the taps, and I actually wondered about the wee heavy, but went for the IPA in the end.  It's similar to the märzen in color, but much hoppier in aroma and clearly an IPA in taste.  It's not too bitter in fact, but sharp and fruity with those tropical flavors they like to bring out.  Let it warm up for a bit of sour (although that could also be some wee heavy that didn't get washed out completely).

I guess I could go for that new craze of NEIPA while I'm here, in a beer market, and with such good prospects.  I passed by Jakobsland several times, admiring the selection, but now it's time to see what's up.  Pixel Dust DDH NEIPA is.  What is.  Up.  Right.  It's a cloudy lemon yellow, not much head to it, and a lemony smell.  Not too strong to the nose.  The flavor starts with a bitter hops kick and quickly moves off into a smoother, creamier sensation.  The bitter remains at the edges, but the central feeling is one of sweetness, almost vanilla.  At first I thought I could detect some licorice in there too, but further sipping didn't bring it out again.

More pale ale?  Lupo Lord at your service!  I was "recruited" off the track by the rep, and as I was paying the head died down a little so he topped it up generously.  It's a good golden color, pretty fruity aroma, although not as tropical as IPAs.  Something more appley.  There is also apple in the taste, which is something like a dry cider.  There's no bitterness to speak of, and it loses some of the apple flavor over time.  It stays on the light side of sweet, not syrupy, but refreshing and summery.  Might fit right in at a Hallowe'en party instead of a darker and heavier apple cider.

To finish the next to last day I found something I thought wouldn't weigh me down on the metro: Basqueland Brewing The Captain Kölsch.  It looks darker than I expect in a kölsch, although in the sun it is close to straw colored.  Nothing of particular note in the aroma, smooth and only slightly bitter flavor.  It's a little heavy for a kölsch, clean flavored but with a hint of sweet trailing behind it, the slight grassiness of German lagers, no ginger spice although the description promised ginger.  It does have a very German flavor, but more lager than kölsch to me.

Pinocchio's a big boy now, apparently

Finally, the last day had to come.  I was on a mission to find the most interesting beers.  I started with La Verbena Heavy Kilt Scottish Heavy.  Not too strong to start out at 3.8%, but a nice tasty beer for a Scottish kind of day.  Good dark cider color and off-white head, smells bready.  The flavor isn't too strong, a little grainy with just a touch of caramel.  Not nearly as sweet as other "Scottish" labeled beers out there, rather a sipping beer for light conversation or for sitting down to some heavy reading.

Since it is around Hallowe'en, it seems right to partake of a pumpkin ale.  Sagra had its offer, but if I can find something new I prefer to go for that.  Tyris Pimpan Pumpkin fit the bill.  It's a good dark orange color with a nice fluffy head, and a tiny hint of pumpkin spice aroma.  The flavor has a sweet tingle in the beginning but burrows down into cinnamon pretty quickly.  It's not exactly sweet, more of a pumpkin pie taste, not even as sweet as a Starbuck's latte.  It's also not a heavy textured beer, very light in feel in spite of the strength of the spice.  A little more interesting than Sagra, which is a nice, safe sort of pumpkin ale bet.

Another odd one, at least on the signage, was Yakka's Lunatica grape ale.  It has a slightly pinkish brown color, a sort of dark champagne.  The scent is winey/grapey, just a little bit sour, but then the taste is very  sour, hits you right in the palate.  The aftertaste is a little salty, something like a red wine in fact.  Served cold, the sourness fades over time, but the similarity to sparking wine remains, sharp and pretty clean tasting.  Really, it might be more like sparkling grape juice, although that 8% does start to make itself felt after a short time.

Nothing like a magician to get people drinking

There's not a lot of extra special stuff at the moment, but the normal stuff can still be damn good.  There's Gabarrera Brown Ale/Tostada.  It's not too dark in color, but identifiably brown ale.  Nothing special in the aroma, the taste starts on the sweet side, then moves into a sort of mellow non-bitter.  There's a good texture, neither syrupy nor watery, and a flavor that enhances rather than distracts lacking all bitterness.  It seems like a brown sugar ale, a good wintery sort of beer with the power of the sweet to fuel warmth and the weight to be a good companion for a breezy evening, even on a day of a hurricane.

What else?  Got to have one last stout.  La Pirata Black Block Stout for example.  It smells of licorice, has a slightly sweet flavor, but ends up more bitter overall.  Licorice lurks in the flavor throughout, gets a little sticky after a time, but generally it feels like a good beer to relax with, curled up on a couch.  Although heavy, the texture of the Black Block is also very pleasant and fulfilling in consumption.

I guess I'm just looking for excuses not to leave now.  Sevebrau is no slouch with the beer, though, and I haven't tried anything from them for a while.  There's a nice IPA to finish, XIPA.  It's a very dark color, but light aroma, bright and happy.  The taste is nicely bitter, slightly citrus and only a touch of sweet.  While somewhat hoppy it's not overwhelming, just about the quintessential craft beer for the masses.

Sackman also did whiskey cocktails, for the more refined taste.  Or you know, for everybody.

And now what, with no more fairs on the horizon?  Maybe a song will give me some ideas...