No Mark, no review

Since wheat-allergic Mark is in recovery mode this week, Jere and I tried New Belgium's Mothership Wit, an organic wheat beer I had never before seen at my local liquor store. It's a good beer, very citrus-y and appropriate for late summer, but it was a tad too sweet for me to want a second (as there were other selections next to it in the fridge). I think I'll end up buying it again. We probably should've written a review to have a little variety on the ol' blog, but we were so busy practicing classical music that we didn't have time. The rousing Harry Potter discussion with Kate didn't help our time management much either.

In other news, someone needs to get us a gig in Albuquerque so we can have some space beer.

-Jon

Where were you on the night of August 4th, 2007?

We were playing at Folsom Coffee, and you should've been there. Here's a track in case you missed it.

Download the MP3

Cold Hop (bottled) - 3.5

Cold Hop
"British-Style Ale" (whatever that means--it drinks like an American Pale Ale)
Boulder Beer Company
Boulder, CO
Alcohol Content: 6.5%

Jon:
The sweetness of this beer is too intense on the finish. It kind of tastes like someone slipped some Splenda in my beer. As pretty as this beer looks, it's a tad disappointing to taste.

3.2	Appearance Aroma Palate Flavor Price Buzz Overall 4/5 8/10 3/5 6/10 3/5 3/5 5/10

Mark:
Surprisingly sweet, a bit like toast with orange marmalade with a decidingly floral aftertaste. Bright, with a golden/orange color and opaque head. Not bad for a change of pace, but I don't think I'd drink it every day.

3.3	Appearance Aroma Palate Flavor Price Buzz Overall 4/5 6/10 3/5 6/10 4/5 4/5 6/10

Jere:
The sweetness is quite distinctive--almost makes me forget it's a beer! Not used to the heavy carbonation though, which is kind of a turn-off.

3.9	Appearance Aroma Palate Flavor Price Buzz Overall 3/5 9/10 4/5 8/10 3/5 4/5 8/10

Avery IPA (bottled) - 3.8

Avery IPA
India Pale Ale
Avery Brewing
Boulder, CO
Alcohol Content: 6.3%

Jon:
This beer has a little bit of the IPA sourness that I'm not a huge fan of. Other than that, this is a pretty good hop-fest, and big props for Boulder breweries.

3.7	Appearance Aroma Palate Flavor Price Buzz Overall 4/5 7/10 3/5 7/10 5/5 3/5 8/10

Mark:
Obviously, I love IPA's and this one is no exception. I love that this beer is brewed right here in Boulder, Colorado. YEAH, IT IS! It just tastes fresh. No long ride in the beer truck here. This is another light, hoppy IPA with citrus (lemon and grapefruit) overtones and light golden color. This IPA is a bit mellow, by my standards, but very enjoyable. All together, a very acceptable IPA. By the way, this beer (along with every other beer) tastes quite different on tap. If you have the option of draft, go for it.

3.8	Appearance Aroma Palate Flavor Price Buzz Overall 4/5 8/10 4/5 7/10 5/5 3/5 7/10

Jere:
Avery, Avery, Avery. Always a good buy, and I especially like the color. The cirtus-ey taste also adds to the overall experience. The only drawback I can see is the buzz factor, which isn't quite as high as I'd prefer. I always appreciate the locally brewed beer though so that's why this one rates 8 out of 10.

4.0	Appearance Aroma Palate Flavor Price Buzz Overall 4/5 8/10 4/5 8/10 5/5 3/5 8/10

Stone IPA (bottled) - 4.5

Stone IPA
India Pale Ale
Stone Brewing Co.
Escondido, CA
Alcohol Content: 6.9%

Jon:
At first glance this IPA doesn't look quite as perfect as it really is (but damn close). And yes, it's perfect. This is what an IPA should taste like. Stone manages a perfect bitterness profile through its strong citrus overtones and clean (for an IPA) finish. This is one of our favorite beers for very good reason. And the gargoyles on the bottle? Frickin awesome.

4.5	Appearance Aroma Palate Flavor Price Buzz Overall 4/5 9/10 5/5 10/10 4/5 4/5 9/10

Mark:
Ahh....Stone IPA, one of my perennial favorites! My favorite thing about this beer is the fantastic grapefruit aroma and overtones. Light, but extremely hoppy and nicely bitter. There's also that 6.9% alcohol level... Yee ha! This IPA is great, but not quite my favorite. Although the flavor and palate is complex (and wonderful), it seems that a lot of what comes through is the alcohol taste, which I have somehow been numbed to?! There is another IPA that I like just a little bit better--but that is yet to come. Stay tuned.

4.5	Appearance Aroma Palate Flavor Price Buzz Overall 4/5 9/10 5/5 9/10 4/5 5/5 9/10

Jere:
Full bodied, with that unmistakable "Stone" flavor, this beer is best on tap, but the next best thing is opening a cold one up right out of the refrigerator. Well-brewed, well-rounded, this beer rates second only to the Ruination style of Stone. Two thumbs way up!

4.4	Appearance Aroma Palate Flavor Price Buzz Overall 5/5 9/10 5/5 9/10 2/5 5/5 9/10

How we rate beer

Here is our rating method, modified from a good rating scale that can be found on RateBeer.com:

Appearance (5 points)
If it looks like a beer, we’ll probably drink it, but that doesn’t mean we’ll be extremely pleased with that decision. A good beer looks tasty and makes you want to pick it up—important characteristics such as color, head, and clarity can do a lot for the beer-drinking experience. At least that’s the case with the first couple of beers… results may vary after that.

Aroma (10 points)
Try as we might, it’s damn near impossible to taste something without smelling it, and vice versa. These senses are highly linked, so this category has a bit more weight than the first. The aroma of a beverage will often tell you even more about its subtle qualities than tasting it will. The only thing a good-smelling beer won’t help you with is how your breath smells after putting away a six-pack.

Palate (5 points)
A balanced mouthfeel is essential—drink a beer that feels too dry or overwhelming and you’ll probably need to order something else for the next round to recover. That said, different styles of beer will naturally follow a palate pattern based on their composition. Ratings in this category are usually defined by what the drinker is expecting based on the type of beer, coupled with the enjoyableness of the mouthfeel based on that expectation.

Flavor (10 points)
This is what drinking beer is all about. The balance of different flavors and the intensity of those flavors will distinguish the beers you like and the beers you tolerate. And as always in life, tolerance is a virtue.

Price (5 points)
We’re cheapskates. That’s not to say that we won’t shell out for good beer, but we expect to get what we pay for. Did I mention that we’re cheapskates?

Buzz (5 points)
Fact: People like to get a beer buzz. Fact: The older I get, the fewer beers I drink. Conclusion: A beer that feels full in my stomach and gets me a tad tipsy is a good thing—fewer drinks and a slower pace never hurt anyone.

Overall (10 points)
This is the place to give a little extra credit for anything that strikes our fancy. We’re not just talking excellence in the categories above; anything from socially responsible business practices to cool label art can get points here. The beer experience goes far beyond the act of drinking it, and this category reflects just that.

That puts us at a total of 50 points, which is divided by 10 for a total score out of 5.0. Individual band member scores are averaged to give us the master composite score, which is then laid down in the history books as absolute truth, forevermore (or until we try the same beer again).

Yeah, you read the title right... It's a blog about beer

We’ve tossed around the idea of having a band blog for a long time. But when it came down to it, I figured we didn’t have enough day-to-day news to keep anyone (especially ourselves) interested. Then it hit me—what is the one thing we do at every band practice and every gig? Play music? Yes, but ignore that fact for a moment. The one thing we do without fail at every band gathering is… you guessed it… drink beer!

And so, we finally have something to blog about. We will be using this space to post our thoughts about what we drink, and I’m sure we’ll throw some band news in there every now and then. Here’s a toast to hoping it keeps us all entertained for a while. Cheers!