nutty days

It's a world of signs and guides and new demands, isn't it?  Keep your distance on the metro, obligatory masks, hand sanitizer everywhere...I went to visit a beer store in a market, one of those with a good number of taps too, and the security guards were taking temperatures at the door.  It's those laser thermometers, and I would expect there to be some distortion from the heat of the damn summer sun, but I guess those things are sophisticated enough to distinguish a real fever from excessive sun.  A little wander around the shop and I came across Peanut Gorilla, a barrel aged imperial stout from Basqueland.

A lovely dark brown color, beige head that isn't particularly foamy, and a tempting sweet aroma.  It promises to be a bit heavy.  There's a similarity to a number of other nut-added beers, be it pecan, hazelnut or chestnut.  I get a feeling that is reminiscent of peanut butter cups, with the chocolate mixed with peanut butter, although it's somewhat saltier and has the expected tang of licorice.  While mouth-filling, it's not exceptionally heavy, and goes down quickly.  It's clean, but not completely smooth, with a little rumble of scratchy bitterness at the end of the swallow.  Other notes make their appearances, little by little: chocolate syrup; sour fruit.  Not much coffee in this stout, or smoke, or earth.  It's a happy little beer, just right for me, summer or winter.  Tastes are swaying in a lighter, puckerier direction, but I will not be kept from my black beers!

Supplier: La Buena Pinta
Price: €5.60

cake day coming up?

This was actually the first beer I grabbed off the shelf on my last venture to Birra y Paz, which should surprise nobody.  Four Layer Cake from Basqueland sounds like it might be one of those new-fangled pastry stouts, but no, it is just a stout with chocolate and sea salt.  Well, and it's an extra Basque stout.  So maybe it is a little new-fangled.  One might expect to avoid the darkest beers on these days with extreme heat advisories, but I'm in my own damn house.  And even if I went out, craft beer bars tend to have A/C, so it isn't too much of a problem.  I can enjoy my stouts all year!  And I do!

It does indeed look deliciously cake-y, all black and a vaguely milk chocolate-y head.  It's not too sweet in aroma, a little bit light in fact.  Mildly toasty.  Very smooth feel, not much sweetness in the flavor either.  There is that reminder of dark chocolate, just a pinch of bitterness.  The smooth body makes you think more of milk chocolate, though.  There's a tingling left behind, but not a lot of aftertaste.  It's quite a clean drink for one with added chocolate.  It takes a while for the salt to come out, it was more of the sensation than the taste of it that I noticed.  Despite its name it is no pastry stout (and didn't claim to be).  Doesn't overload in hot weather and has that cuddly, fluffy bitter that I appreciate in a black beer, it's quite a treat for a summer weekend.

Supplier: Birra y Paz
Price: €3.90

sweettooth

Nothing wrong with a little experimentation over the summer.  While it's always time for beer, it's not often you come across a mead these days.  This one is a little special, too, with its added liquid caramel.  It's also domestically produced honey, so we can feel good about supporting our local industries.  Or at least national.  It's not my first mead, but Crisada Beetter looks like one to be recommendable.

It definitely has the look of honey, unfiltered and aged honey.  No bubbles or head.  Interesting sweet wine kind of aroma, not super strong on either one.  The flavor has a winier kick at first, but some honey sweetness slides out in the end.  It's a very light drink despite the somewhat high alcohol content of 10.2%.  It also isn't cloyingly sweet like some meads can be.  It's a pleasant touch, flowery, non-sticky.  The bottle suggests accompanying the drink with nuts or something salty, which might bring out a little more sweetness in the mead itself.  I don't know if I would like it much sweeter actually; I might prefer some mildly sweet nuts like almonds or cashews over something salty.

Supplier: Birra y Paz
Price: €4.65

a useful name indeed

It's a weird summer already, and holidays will be weird for the foreseeable future.  Gotta be careful of gatherings and that sort of thing.  It seems like things are pretty subdued today, in spite of the insistence from a loud bit of society that the show must go on, virus or not.  To be appropriate I have an American beer on hand, Flying Dog's Snake Dog IPA.  Newer styles have appeared of course, but the IPA is the foundation of American craft beer, a truly American industry.

It's a rich, dark gold, fluffy and resistant head, tingly and mildly citrusy aroma.  There is a touch of something else in there too, something light and summery.  Cucumber maybe?  Could be a hint of pepper.  The flavor is surprisingly mild, just barely bitter.  Kind of a half-hearted hoppy tang.  It has a good, solid feel, and is not unpleasant by any means.  This is one of the better beers to have at a barbecue, with enough flavor to be worthwhile on its own, but not so strong you get distracted from the food.  It's a bright and clear drink, full of hope.  At just over 7% it's not one you want to gulp down from the cooler in the park, but in your own backyard it's a pretty good pick.

Supplier: Birra Y Paz
Price: €3.50