whoops

As Beer Week continues and I don't have time to browse my beer stores, I find myself stopping off for a drink on my way home.  I was planning to stop somewhere new today, but when I walked up there at 9pm it was closed!  That's just a bad sign.  For that place, I mean, plenty of other places were bustling with patrons.  One of them, the Taproom, had every outdoor table filled, even right next to the street, but inside it was pretty empty.  Not all that surprising in this town actually.

The Taproom has up to 20 beers on tap at a time, so the offer is pretty varied.  I'm trying to stay local, or at least national, which did knock off several, including The Mayan (another day, my darling).  I ended up with Vikingathor, an Indian Dunkel from Arriaca.  It turns out I've bought it in the bottle before, but we'll see how it compares from the tap.

It has a rich dark color, a bright clean head, and a subdued but suggestive smell.  There's a sweetness, maybe trying to invoke that typical viking mead.  In the dimness of the interior light, I'd call it a dark ruby red.  It doesn't seem to gain any superpowers from the tap when compared to what I got from the bottle, but that doesn't mean disappointment.  It's a good beer, slightly sweet, a little citrusy, maybe just a little sticky.  In spite of its dark color, it's a fine warm weather drink, being light and fruity, but at the same time it could hold its own in the dark days of winter.  The salty chips are a nice counterpoint to the sweetness of the beer.  But then, you get salty chips pretty much all over in this town.

Supplier: The Taproom
Price: €4.40/pint

til next time

Beer Week is over...for the time being.  The last one was in November, so there might be another yet this year.  To send off the celebration, I have one more Spanish beer, Vikingathor, produced by Arriaca from a recipe written by master brewer Boris de Mesones, hence the Boris Brew on the bottle.

Not a face you say no to

It's a root beer brown, more soda-like in appearance than beery, but the head is extra thick.  Still, a good root beer has head too.  It smells a bit malty, like a German dark beer often does, but there's a citrus snap in it.  The taste is a rolling combination of bitter, sweet, and woodiness.  The bitter and sweet learn to play nicely together, but there's a kind of smoky burn at the back of the throat after some time with the beer.  It doesn't grow into a bothersome or distasteful flavor, but it's an interesting thing to notice, giving the beer another touch of complexity.  I was warned that it was stronger than it might seem at first, and it doesn't go down like a strong beer at all.  The taste(s) can only be described as smooth and easily taken in.

Supplier: La Birratorium
Price: €2.50