no snakes, but sand

For some reason I'm not very good at getting beer for specific holidays in advance.  It always comes down to the day before or so when I have to hurry down to some store to frantically search for something fitting.  So, for St. Patrick's Day I naturally had to make a trip, and I was pretty sure La Cervecista, with its industrial background, would have a selection of beers to choose from.  It actually wasn't hard to choose -  I found Around The Clock in the fridge, among the stouts, and with its production including Irish whiskey barrels, it looks like the perfect thing to enjoy on this holiday.  I'm certainly not going out with all the dust around.  It's another great reason to keep the mask on, but it's so much more comfortable to just stay home with a good drink.  It seems to me Porterhouse has made an appearance in my fridge before, or at least in some bar's fridge where I had a chance to pick it out.  A whiskey and bourbon accented beer is something new, though.

The tingly strong alcohol smell comes out immediately, with an enticing warmth.  There is also a little bit of sourness, like a fruit liquor.  It's a little less black than the expected stout, but still a good color.  Not a whole lot of head, but there is a nice covering of frosty looking foam.  The flavor is very smooth, no throat grabby kind of alcohol feel.  It's a little bit smoky, a little bit woody.  There's even a sort of milkiness.  The whiskey part is barely detectable, but it is present, adding a strong foundation for the stout to push off of.  Despite the smoothness, I start picking up a little bit of dustiness too, like there's a little finely blended fruit pulp in there.  I wouldn't expect it to be Sahara dust, with that wax cap, and being bottled before the big event.  It has a feeling of calm and steadiness that goes well with a weekday evening, or with a quiet kind of night out.  I don't think I'd enjoy sucking it down at a parade, or in crowded conditions, although it might be comfort when it gets stressful to deal with a bunch of other dipshits on the street.  Or whatever the Irish for dipshit is; I'm positive they have one, if not more.  Some languages are more creative with insult than others!

Supplier: La Cervecista

Price: €6.95

kaboom

I was poking around Be Hoppy, looking for a good black beer and on a lower shelf I spied something looking up at me.  It turned out to be Belgian, not usually my first choice, but I have to admit there are some excellent things that come out of there.  This is one of the more modern products, a bourbon barrel aged stout, climbing up to 13%.  Whew, Moccha Bomb indeed! 

It's a thick looking very dark brown beer, not too much head, but the thin layer is resistant and decorative.  It has a slightly Belgian aroma, tangy and mildly sweet, but there's more dark chocolate than dunkel.  While the flavor is oaty and puffy, there's less chocolate there.  The Belgian twist comes out clearly.  It has a smoothness but also a good amount of solidness, almost like a melted ice cream.  A taste of fruit develops, raisins or maybe dried apple.  It's not quite as clean as some recent beers, leaving a slightly sour aftertaste at the top of the throat, but it's not hard to get down at all. The fruitiness makes it seem like a nice afternoon beverage, something to sip under an umbrella in a shady beer garden.  But there is a hidden strength that lies in wait, and although the bottle is a normal one, it packs quite a punch.  A nice piece of cake or a brownie a la mode would be amazing right now.

openly smuggled

The latest discussion was the Great Beer Wars of the late 20th and early 21st centuries.  Founders represents the situation pretty well, a craft brewery that got swept up in hopes of greater market access.  I mean, it's not 100% owned by Mahou, but it's more than 25%, which is enough for the Brewers Association to say it doesn't count as craft anymore.  There's plenty of interesting stuff coming out of there, though, like Barrel Runner, a "Mosaic hopped ale aged in rum barrels".  Oughta be something different, at least!

There is a strong, sweet smell of rum right away, and the beer has a honey gold color that is certainly appetizing.  The head isn't over-abundant, but thick and stays put.  A little further sniffing pulls a fruitiness out of the aroma, something like a fig newton.  The flavor captures the burny feeling of strong alcohols, with a touch of rum sweetness, but there's a clash of flavors with the bright citrus of the mosaic hops.  It almost tastes like two drinks at once, like you're taking sips from separate glasses and mixing them in your mouth.  It's an experience, although I think it's not as smooth as other rum barrel beers I've had.

Supplier: La Cervecista

Price: €8.20