Allagash White

had this on tap tonight at Tommy's Brick Oven in Red Bank (in the Galleria).

delicious.

described as their "interpretation of a traditional Belgian wheat beer....brewed with a generous portion of wheat and our own special blend of spices"

indeed its taste is indistinguishable from Hoegaarden (Belgian wheat beer flavored with orange peel and coriander.  I suspect those are the very same ingredients that make up their  "own special blend of spices"

Verdict: drink this!!

Rating: 9.0!!

http://www.allagash.com/white.htm

some more brews

Samuel Adams Blackberry Witbier

A: pale yellow
S: smells like a fruity winecooler.  instant flashbacks of drunkin teenage nights. winecooler smell. no doubt.  btw, that is NOT a good thing in a beer ;)  I saw a review where it called the smell "fake"...I can see that.
T:  fruity.  not as fruity as the smell however. 
Drinkability: A very light beer.  probably better on a hot day in July but the sweetness would prevent me from downing one after the other.
Verdict:  too fruity for my taste.  good wheat beers can add a fruity element (like orange peel in Hoegaarden) that add interest without being sweet. this isnt sweet to the point of being offensive but I wouldnt want to drink more than two.  I wouldnt seek this out but I'd drink one or two if given to me.
Rating: 6.5
http://www.liquoroutletwinecellars.com/sku09071.html?utm_source=Google%20Products&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=SAM%20ADAMS%20BLACKBERRY%20WITBIER

Session Lager

Verdict:  not gonna "review" since its just a lager (yes, I am a beer snob).  Guy at WholeFoods recommended this to the wife who was looking for something "similar to Red Stripe" (which we both like....particularly Red Stripe Light which we both prefer to the regular Red Stripe).  anyway, this is a good, run-of-the-mill unoffensive lager.  made by Full Sail Brewery which makes a piss-poor IPA...seems like they got their "standard lager" right.  certainly a step above the likes of Bud.  extremely smooth and easy drinking but atleast has some flavor to it.  plus, the bottle is cool looking ;)
Rating: 7.0 (which is the ceiling for a beer like this so kudos to the Brewery!!!)
http://www.fullsailbrewing.com/session.cfm

Harpoon IPA

Taste: a solid IPA taste, but far from expectional.  nice hoppy bite with some flavor but nothing that makes you say "wow"
Verdict: solid IPA. not great. middle-of-the road IPA.
Rating: 7.5
http://www.harpoonbrewery.com/index.cfm?pid=28507

Brooklyn Brewery East India Pale Ale

found this review on www.Beeradvocate.com to be accurate....

"Pours a light golden copper, barely hazy, with a thin white cap that fades very quickly. Nice streams of bubbles flowing up.

Nose is nice - orange marmalade, caramel hiding underneath, toasted bread, and a light layer of spicy pine on top. Nicely balanced, refreshing to see an American take on a British style that doesn't load itself down with American hops.

Taste is nice - subtle blend of toasty, orangey malt underneath, bready, and a nice, soft layer of spicy, earthy hops hinting at pine. Moderate lingering bitterness. Bit of butter, slick, not overwhelming.

Mouthfeel is nice as well - soft prickle, slick, full bodied, mellow. Lovely.

Drinkable is an understatement - mellow and flavorful, really enjoyable beer. Balanced and, above all, tasty."
 

Wonderturtle's verdict: first of all, the guy who did the review above might sound like a pretentious jerk ("nose of orange  marmalade, caramel hiding underneath, toasted bread, and a light layer of spicy pine on top") but, while drinking the beer and reading his review at the same time, he knows what he's talking about. 

this beer is good although it doesnt have the depth of flavor of a really good IPA it is also relatively tame.   certainly an IPA that you can drink many of.

Wonderturtle's rating: 8.0

http://www.brooklynbrewery.com/beer/

comparing IPAs....

Sam Adams Latitude 48 IPA

Serving Type: bottle poured into glass

Appearance(A): nice amber color with tan head that lingered. 

Taste (T):  tasty. nice hoppy bite that didnt overpower.  certainly more tasty than the Fort Collins IPA...more flavorful. more interesting. 

Verdict:  I had this right after a ride. there is something about a good IPA after a ride. the hoppy bite is just sooooo refreshing after a ride.  yum. yum. would certainly seek this out again. thumbs up.

Rating: 8.5

http://www.samueladams.com/enjoy-our-beer/beer-detail.aspx?id=40f052d8-81f6-4a7b-9a38-6806c0eeebff

 

Smuttynose IPA

Serving Type: bottle poured into glass

Appearance(A): orange color with white head.

Smell (s): citrus, grapefruit, hops. 

Taste (T):  same as smell.  more of a hoppy bite than the Sam Adams.  delicious. interesting.

Verdict: this has been amongst my favorites for a while now and remains so.  great beer.  

Rating: 9.0

http://www.smuttynose.com/beers/full_time_beers/finestkind_ipa.html

 

Black Lagers

gonna review and compare two "black lagers".  

from wiki (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Schwarzbier)...

• Schwarzbier, or "black beer", is a German dark lager beer. It has an opaque, black color and a full, chocolatey or coffee flavor. Although they share some similar flavors they are milder tasting and less bitter than British stouts or porters, owing to the use of lager rather than ale yeast and no roasted barley.
• They get their dark color from the use of particularly dark malts in brewing. The malt in turn gets its color during the roasting procedure.
• Dark beers are some of the original types of beers brewed, with lighter colors only becoming possible with lighter, short-roasted malts approximately one hundred and fifty years ago.

Fort Collins Brewery:  Kidd Black Lager

Serving Type: bottle poured into glass

Appearance(A):   very dark brown with tan head, not quite black, not quite opaque

Smell (S): light coffee

Taste (T): roast coffee and chocolate.  light smoke.  as described in wiki...tastes like a light stout  

Mouthfeel (M): mildly bitter and acidic

Drinkability (D): again, as described in wiki...seems like a light stout.  similar

Verdict:  pretty tasty and interesting beer. not sure if I've ever had a "black lager" before.  not sure if I'd ever seek this out but nice change of pace beer.  certainly wouldnt turn it down if offered. 

Rating: 7.5

http://www.fortcollinsbrewery.com/kidd.html

Sam Adams Black Lager

Serving Type: bottle poured into glass

Appearance(A): same as Fort Collins. maybe slightly darker   

Smell (S): nothing much to speak of. perhaps a very light coffee. nope....I take that back....nothing.

Taste (T):  distinct coffee flavor.  less "roasty" and "smokey" than the Fort Collins...has a "creaminess" to it that is not in the Fort Collins (not necessarily good or bad).  however,  there's some weird after taste that I dont like.

Mouthfeel (M): I'm gonna stop commenting. I dont really know WTF this means.  I guess you could say this is slightly creamy

Drinkability (D):  okay at first than comes that weird after taste

Verdict:  unlike the Fort Collins, dont think I'd drink this if offered.  it's not bad per se, just not good. 

Rating: 6.0

http://www.samueladams.com/enjoy-our-beer/beer-detail.aspx?id=6f4f9af0-0ebc-4637-be5f-bdeb3fc94724

Dogfish Head Aprihop

read about this on http://www.mtbnj.com/ .  was described as "Magic Hat #9 on steriods".  well, with a description like that.....

not gonna do a "formal" review since I didn't have the computer with me this weekend, but this was delish.

the snipets from their website quite accurate...

• Aprihop is our fruit beer for hopheads!
• ....massively hopped in in the continuous fashion. The flavor is complimented by the addition of Apricots.
• The beer is hoppy in the aroma with the apricots playing a supporting complimentary role.
• The flavor is rich with late hop flavors and it's bitterness is tempered by just the right amount of malt sweetness and fruity undertones from the apricots.

the point:  nice hoppy IPA with a subtle apricot flavor that adds interest WITHOUT being sweet.  nice. nice beer.

"Magic Hat #9 on steriods" indeed.

rating: 9.0

http://www.dogfish.com/brews-spirits/the-brews/seasonal-brews/aprihop.htm

Fort Collins Brewery: Retro Red

Fort Collins Brewery:  Retro Red

described as a "red ale"

Serving Type: bottle poured into glass

Appearance(A): dark caramel color. dark amber. light tan head, 1/4 finger thick. nice looking beer in the glass even though it doesnt give much head.  

Smell (S): nothing

Taste (T):  I guess this is what they call a "balanced" beer.  definitely some malty sweetness balanced by some hoppy bitterness.  neither is over-powering the other. nice.  

Mouthfeel (M): dont know what to sayt about this one.  still trying to figure out what this means ;)

Drinkability (D): pretty tasty beer that goes down easily.

Verdict:  relatively uninteresting but unoffensive beer.  doesnt wow you but tastes good enough to down a few, but little "yummy!!!" factor. rating might be generous.

Rating: 7.0

http://www.fortcollinsbrewery.com/retrored.html