Tag Archives: Bootlegger’s Brewing

Vendome Beer Panel – April 27, 2017

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The latest Vendome Beer Panel was a little different. Each member of the panel chose a beer for tasting. Here are reviews of six beers from five different breweries. All of them are good, but none earned a top score of “5” on my scorecard.

If these reviews intrigue you or pique your interest, take a trip to Vendome Wine and Spirits in Fullerton and use my code, “VEN10C” or mention my name “CARL” to get a 10% discount off the price. Enough of the fine print though, here’s what you want to know.

The Vendome rating system:
0 – I wouldn’t offer this beer to my worst enemy.
1 – I wouldn’t pay for this beer, but it’s alright.
2 – Tasty, but easily forgettable.
3 – I’ve had better, I’ve had worse.
4 – I can see myself buying this beer and ordering seconds.
5 – Just hook up the beer straight to my veins.

Propeller-Head: Unsung Brewing, Anaheim, CA. 6.0% ABV. Rating – 4
This is a coffee infused amber ale. It pours a medium amber color with a light beige head. The aroma is sweet coffee. Propeller-Head has a light coffee flavor, slightly sweet and caramel, with no bitterness noted. There is a well balanced sweet but hoppy aftertaste. Ultimately this is all about the coffee: it predominates the aroma and flavor, and lingers in the aftertaste, but it’s not too strong.

Coffee beers are very popular right now and it seems that every brewery is making them. Some are good, but some aren’t to my liking. I think coffee works well in the darker beers, but not so well in the lighter colored beers (especially IPAs). Propeller-Head is very good. The caramel flavors in this amber ale stand up well to the coffee, and make for a very pleasant beer.

Bursted Cascade: El Segundo Brewing, El Segundo, CA. 6.0% ABV. Rating – 3
Bursted Cascade is a single hop IPA. It pours a golden, slight orange color, with a white foamy head that rapidly fades to a 1/8” ring around the perimeter. The aroma is citrus (as expected from Cascade), but not real strong. The flavor is grapefruit, but again, not too strong. The body is fairly light, with medium carbonation.

Bursted Cascade is a very drinkable, refreshing, thirst quenching beer. I would describe it as on the light side as far as hoppiness for an IPA. The alcohol content is fairly low at 6%, so it’s easy drinking. Overall, it’s a nice beer, but I think it could use some additional bitterness and hoppiness.

Knuckle Sandwich: Bootleggers Brewing, Fullerton, CA. 10% ABV. Rating – 4
This is the beer I chose for the Panel. Knuckle Sandwich is a Double IPA with a very high alcohol content. It pours a deep amber color with a thick beige colored head. The aroma is bittersweet – caramel malt with citrus notes. The flavor is citrus and pine, followed by malty sweet caramel. The malty sweetness lingers in the aftertaste, but is balanced by the bitterness.

Knuckle Sandwich is a typical DIPA, in that it can accurately be described as bittersweet. The malty/caramel sweetness stands out, but it’s not cloying or overly sweet. The body is full to heavy, and the carbonation level is medium. The alcohol level is high, but not noticeable in the flavor. Be careful, because a 22 oz. bomber can do some substantial damage. Overall, this is an excellent beer.

Hop Juice: Left Coast Brewing, San Clemente, CA. 10% ABV. Rating – 4
This is a triple IPA. Hop Juice pours light orange with a white head that persists for about a minute before fading to a substantial ring. The aroma is slightly bitter, but not overpowering. The flavor starts malty sweet, followed by a very nice grapefruit that fades to a clean citrus bitterness. The body and carbonation level are medium.

Hop Juice is 10% ABV, but that high alcohol content is even more well hidden than Knuckle Sandwich. This is quite easy to drink and overall, is a very good beer.

Asylum: Left Coast Brewing, San Clemente, CA. 11.8% ABV. Rating – 4
I think Left Coast Brewing likes to make big beers. Asylum is a Belgian style Tripel. I don’t typically drink Belgian style ales, but tend to tolerate, or even like, dubbels and tripels. This one is no exception, and I found that I really liked Asylum.

Asylum pours light orange with a white head. The aroma has the typical Belgian spicy sweet notes. The flavor is very sweet and fruity, with the Belgian yeast spiciness very subdued, and only in the aftertaste. The body is heavy with a thick mouth feel, but is mitigated by the high carbonation level. I found this fruity Belgian style ale very pleasant to drink.

Imperial Russian Stout: Stone Brewing, Escondido, CA. 10.6% ABV. Rating – 4
Oh how I love dark beers, and just about anything from Stone Brewing. Imperial Russian Stout pours black as midnight with a cocoa colored head that fades to a 1/8” ring around the perimeter. The aroma is sweet, chocolate and brown sugar. The flavor is sweet as well – chocolate, dark fruit and raisin – but also brings some bitter, roasty coffee. The aftertaste is chocolate, vanilla and sweet, but with some balancing bitterness and lingering coffee roastiness.

The body is heavy and the mouth feel is smooth, thick and viscous. Alcohol content is high, but is only slightly noticeable on the palate. This is one of the great non-barrel aged stouts available. I love Stone IRS and highly recommend it.

Well, that’s it for now, beer lovers. I can recommend all six of these beers (caveat: Bursted Cascade is nice, but doesn’t stand out from the hundreds of other IPAs on the market). I would say my favorite of the bunch is the Stone IRS. If you have an interest in drinking any of these, they are available for purchase at Vendome Wine and Spirits in Fullerton. Be sure to mention my discount code, “VEN10C” or my name, “CARL” to get a 10% discount off the purchase price.

Sláinte!

Vendome Beer Panel – March 30, 2017

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The Vendome Beer Panel sampled a variety of beers from five different breweries on Thursday March 30, 2017. If these reviews intrigue you or pique your interest, head over to Vendome Wine and Spirits in Fullerton and use my code, “VEN10C” to get a 10% discount off the price.

The rating system:
0 – I wouldn’t offer this beer to my worst enemy.
1 – I wouldn’t pay for this beer, but it’s alrigjht.
2 – Tasty, but easily forgettable.
3 – I’ve had better, I’ve had worse.
4 – I can see myself buying this beer and ordering seconds.
5 – Just hook up the beer straight to my veins.

GT Gose: Anderson Valley Brewing, Boonville, CA. 4.2% ABV. Rating – 2
This beer pours a clear straw yellow with a ½” white head that persists throughout the session. The aroma is tart, citrus, with just a touch of sulfur. The flavor follows the nose – citrus (mainly lime) and tart. Think of Sprite, but a little tart.   These flavors fade to a very slight malty aftertaste. GT Gose is well carbonated and light bodied.

I gave GT Gose a “2” rating because I just don’t care much for the style. This beer would be good on a hot summer day – it’s light and refreshing, low in alcohol and easy to drink. I gravitate to dark beers, big beers and IPAs. This was too much like drinking Sprite. (Note: GT Gose is Anderson Valley’s take on the classic cocktail, Gin & Tonic. With that in mind, I would say they’ve done a pretty good job, as it’s refreshing like a gin and tonic and easy to drink.)

Vanilla Porter: Latitude 33 Brewing, Vista, CA. 6.5% ABV   35 IBU. Rating – 3
This porter pours black with a ½” tan head of thick foam. The aroma is vanilla with hints of caramel. The flavor is vanilla and bitter chocolate with some grainy bitterness. The aftertaste is a lingering vanilla and bitterness that lingers. Vanilla Porter has medium carbonation, body and mouth feel. Although vanilla leads the flavor charge, it is not overwhelming nor does it taste imitation.

I like Vanilla Porter; it’s good beer. However, it does not stand out from the crowd. It’s just another good porter.

Broken Skull IPA: El Segundo Brewing, El Segundo, CA. 6.7% ABV   67 IBU. Rating – 3
Broken Skull pours light golden with a light cream-colored head that lasts throughout the session. The aroma is citrus and grapefruit with some mango. The flavor is bittersweet, almost like a DIPA. It’s not real bitter – it has a nice malty foundation that hides the 67 IBU. The hoppy character is subdued citrus and grapefruit. The aftertaste is melon/mango, and bittersweet. This IPA is well carbonated with medium body.

Broken Skull IPA is good beer, but it’s pretty mellow; I would categorize it as an East Coast style IPA (more balanced, malty, not so hoppy). It’s an easy drinking IPA, but I think it would benefit from additional dry hopping (disclaimer: I am a hophead; keep that in mind when considering my comments).

Rocco Red: Bootlegger’s Brewing, Fullerton, CA. 7.1% ABV   37 IBU. Rating – 4
This American Red ale pours dark amber with a creamy beige head. The aroma is malty, slightly sweet with just a note of Cascade hops. The flavor is malty, earthy, slightly sweet, but well balanced with some hop bitterness. The malty sweetness lingers in the aftertaste. This red ale has low-medium carbonation and medium body.

Rocco Red is a well-balanced American Red/Amber Ale brewed right here in Fullerton. Well done, Bootlegger’s!

Imperial Stout: Mother Earth Brew Co., Vista, CA 8.1% ABV. Rating – 3
This stout pours black with a ¼” light tan head. The aroma is chocolate, malty and sweet. The flavor follows the aroma – chocolate, with raisin and dark fruit, sweet, with slight notes of tobacco. This fades to sweet prunes. Imperial Stout features low-medium carbonation with medium body and a smooth mouth feel.

Mother Earth’s Imperial Stout is good, but not great. I would drink it again, but it wouldn’t be my first choice for the style. I expect a little heavier body with a lingering bitter chocolate and coffee flavor/aftertaste in an imperial stout.

Well, that’s it for this edition of Vendome Beer Panel. In my opinion, the best of these five is Rocco Red from Bootlegger’s Brewing. I gave GT Gose a low rating because it’s not a beer style that interests me; however, it’s good within the style category and is definitely refreshing. The other three are good, but not outstanding. If you’re interested in any of these beers, you can buy them at Vendome Wine and Spirits in Fullerton. Be sure to use my discount code “VEN10C” to get a 10% discount off the purchase price. Cheers!