Day 345 - Abita Ale

A late addition to the Christmas ale collection, and truly worth the wait...

The color of glowing embers late at night, fresh hoppy aroma, and crisp ale flavor with a dry finish. No fruitiness or spiciness, just good beer. Sigh, this is what this year is all about.

Specs:

Full name: Abita Ale
Brewed By: Abita Brewing Co
From: Abita Springs LA
ABV: 5.5%

You know, all brewers should follow this simle precept - brew good beer. That doesn't seem that hard, but I guess those that don't exist so that we may appreciate those that do more. Down to 20 days, and while they all won't be as good as today (for sure, I have another frubie and green-bottled export in the pipeline...), the line is redrawn.

cheers!

Day 162 - Jockamo

A tough fought World Cup final today, with Spain's defense being the difference (as it was all tournament). Unfortunately, I had to leave to go pick up the van after regulation time, so missed the winning goal. Still, at least I was in the beer store getting new pipeline brews, so it was a worthy cause.


Alas, this one comes up short in my opinion. For a palie, it has a distinct malt hit upfront, and only then ends with the expected dryness. This is the 2nd from this brewer, and I think the first was better. It also could be a bad bottle, but that is the way life is, one shot to get a good blog rating (well, 12 oz to be precise... ;>) )

Full Name: Jockamo IPA
Brewed By: Abita Brewing Co
From: Abita Springs LA
ABV: 6.4%

The good news is, I didn't have to drink the frube, which even an average palie beats easily. Admittedly, it is getting a bit tougher to find new beers, and I was somewhat rushed trying to get back to the car to follow the World Cup.

cheers

Day 35 - Purple Haze / Shoals Pale Ale

So, we were having a kind of early dinner because Liz was going out with a friend, and she wanted me to pull out another from her selection, thus this raspberry wheat. To be honest, I was kind of hoping it would be really sweet/fruity, so I could trash talk it, but at best it is very faint background noise in an otherwise rather common beer. I mean, it doesn't taste like horse urine, but it certainly is snooze city. Again, maybe just another for the "just to look cool" genre for those that like their beer bland. I at least can cross another state off the list, though I hope this isn't the best LA has....


Specs:


Full Name: Purple Haze Raspberry Wheat Brew
Brewed by: Abita Brewing Company
From: Abita Springs, LA
ABV: wasn't on bottle, didn't really care to look it up







Now for the twist. Being the totaly wild/crazy guy I am, I decided that tonight I'd go for two. Plus, I really wanted a pale ale anyway and the Purple Haze provided a perfect excuse. I mean, who could blame me, and since I'd had the IPA from this brewer on day 10 I think, it was kind of like not really breaking the rule of one different/day...(Hum, what sets humans apart - ability to rationalize)



Aahhhhhh, good choice if I may say so. Like the IPA, this has the grapefruity bitterness that I really enjoy, with a clean finish. Just another excellent beer. One of my dreams is owning land with some water to fish, but I might have to add the criteria of within driving distance of this brewery.



Specs:

Full Name: Shoals Pale Ale
Brewed by: Smuttynose Brewing Co
From: Portsmouth, NH
ABV: 5.5% (a bit low, but then, sometimes it isn't about the alcohol...)