Ktreva picked out this weeks beer. She found one that I had never seen before, in fact IÂ’m not even sure where she got it. The label isnÂ’t in English, and the alphabet it is in has letters the standard English alphabet doesnÂ’t have. As far as I can tell from the label the name of the beer is Krusovice Imperial and is from the Czech Republic.

It comes in a 1 pint .9 fluid oz brown bottle, with gold foil at the neck. The label is a golden color with the name of the beer in a red square. There is other writing on the label below the brand type, but the lettering is almost the same color as the label and can not be read.

It pours a crystal clear golden yellow with an orange tint. There is a decent white head, about three quarters of an inch that fades quickly. There is some lacing on the side of the glass, but it mainly disappears with in moments of appearing.

The sent is a mixture of grass, floral hops and various earth tones. It reminds me of smelling a beer while standing in a freshly plowed field. There is a nice malt flavoring blended with floral hops that makes the beer very palatable. There is a slight bitterness to it, and the true flavor of the beer starts to come forth as it warms.

This is a medium bodied beer. There is a decent level of carbonation that is pleasing to the tongue, but doesnÂ’t make it sit heavily.

Surprisingly this is not like most European lagers IÂ’ve had of late. It isnÂ’t a weak watery flavor with no body. It isnÂ’t something IÂ’d really want to drink a lot of on a hot summer day, but itÂ’s worth a try. IÂ’ll rate this 4.5 out of 10.

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After having some bloggers and friends make a suggestion, IÂ’ve been kicking around an idea. IÂ’m just curious that if I hosted a beer tasting, would any of you be interested in attending? IÂ’ve done quite a few reviews and I have my favorites. Some of them I would like to share. It would also be nice to get together with some of my readers for a good sit down visit. If everyone that attended brought a six pack or two of their favorite beers, we could sit back sample them and see which ones we like best. Or we could go to Old Chicago that has over 100 beers in house that way we donÂ’t have to bring anything with. But those are details we can work out later. If you are interested, please respond below by clicking yes or no.

Also this might be a good way to bring back the Blogcrawl. ItÂ’s been two years.

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I was gifted a six-pack of TennentÂ’s of Scotland last week. Since I was gifted it, I felt I was obligated to review it. Especially since it came from a readerÂ… one that never commentsÂ… BASTICH! So if you really want me to review a beer, give me a six-packÂ… hint hint hint. What? So IÂ’m an Alcowhore! Tonight I shall review TennentÂ’s of Scotland Lager by the Tennent Caledonian Breweries.

The lager comes in a green bottle 11.2 FL OZ, which means you need to keep it out of sunlight while storing or transporting or the beer will go bad. IT has an oval body label with the name of the beer in a black circle with two thistles on either side. There is a big red T in the middle. It claims to be “Scotland’s Finest Lager”.

There is a golden yellow color to the beer. It is clear with no hint of cloudiness and light passes through easily. It pours a nice thick white head that lasts for a while. It slowly dissipates into a film on the top of the beer and a ring around the edge of the glass. There is a nice lacing on the glass.

The aroma is very faint and hard to discern. If you try really hard you can get a whiff of sweet malts with a very week hop undertone. The combination almost gives it a good bread smell. The taste is week. Mainly one can taste malts. If there are any hops to the flavor, I couldnÂ’t find it. There is not a touch of bitterness to it. There is also almost no aftertaste. From my experience this is typical of the European lagers.

It is a light bodied beer. There is a crispness to it that is refreshing. The carbonation is a little on the heavy side and it does bite the tongue.

Overall this is a decent beer. Nothing IÂ’d go out of my way for. It is a hot day here, and itÂ’s rather enjoyable. ItÂ’s not so heavy that after one or two in the heat you just donÂ’t want to drink anymore. IÂ’d rate this about a 4.

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Earlier this week I picked up a six-pack of beer to review tonight, but IÂ’ll be saving that for next week. Monday while I was doing grocery shopping, something compelled me to check out the beer section. Yea, I knowÂ… Moth to a flame, etc. They have a beer selection that is rather lacking, and the last two times I was there they had nothing I really wanted to review. So IÂ’m not sure why I decided to check them out, especially when I had a six pack at home in the fridge. While walking down the aisle I saw a four pack that caught my eye; VooDoo Vator by the Atwater Block Brewery. ItÂ’s a high Gravity lager and is 9.5% alcohol by volume.

It comes in our normal 12 oz brown bottle. The label is dark purple with a picture of a skull wearing a hat with a white feather sticking out of it. In that “voodoo” script is the name of the beer.

There is a nice dark brown color to it. Light passes through with some difficulty and as far as I can tell it is pretty clear, but the darkness of the beer makes this hard to tell. It has a nice thick tan head that lasts for a while. As you drink, it leaves a nice lacing on the side of the glass.

You can smell a nice roasted malt sweetness to the beer with some wood accents. There is just a hint of alcohol to the scent. The flavor is a combination of roasted coffee, chocolate and Carmel malts. There is a slight hop bitterness to the finish. Surprisingly there is not a hint of alcohol to the flavor, especially with the ABV.

This really is a smooth beer. ItÂ’s very easy to drink. If it were just a tad thicker it would be a full-bodied beer. The carbonation level is a little on the heavy side.

I really enjoyed this beer. It has a great taste and a smooth finish. It was very pleasant for a High-Gravity lager. IÂ’m going to rate this a 6 out of 10.

Posted by: Contagion at 06:34 PM | No Comments | Add Comment
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IÂ’m still on the quest for Shadoglare to find a great Italian Beer. This week at the store I found a sixer of Peroni Nastro Azzurro. That makes two different Italian beers IÂ’ve tried. So far IÂ’m pretty whelmed by the quality.

It has a green bottle with the name of the company cast into the glass. The label is white with the name of the company in large red letters and the name over the beer just underneath it. There are some blue banners with Italian writing on it. Really there is nothing all that special about the label.

This is another beer with a very pale gold/straw coloring to it. ItÂ’s clear; light passes easily through it with out any problems. It poured a white head, but it disappeared in less then 30 seconds leaving no lacing or film on the top of the beer.

The scent is very faint and hard to discern from other scents in the air. After concentrating you can make out a faint floral hops scent with a touch of malt and citrus. The flavor is week with a slight malt sweetness. There is a nice hop bitterness to the finish that leaves little to no aftertaste.

This is a light bodied beer. There is a strong carbonation at the beginning, but that fades quickly to almost nothing. There is almost no mouth feel to the beer and I liken it to drinking water.

To be honest this beer tasted like a knock off of a standard American lite beer. I know they say they have been around since 1846, but IÂ’d swear I taste a mix of Miller and Bud in this one. ItÂ’s not a bad hot day beer. While grilling tonight I enjoyed one. ItÂ’s a beer that you can drink if you donÂ’t want to be overwhelmed with flavor or your standard beer fillingness. Yea, thatÂ’s a word now! IÂ’m going to give this beer 3.5 out of 10.

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Since this weekend is Cinco de Mayo, I decided to go with an ethnic styled beer. No, itÂ’s not Mexican, every Mexican beer I found IÂ’ve tried and sucks. If any of you bring up Corona, just shut up now. Any beer you have to add fruit to it in order to make it drinkable is not a good beer. Please Corona is the Keystone Light of Mexican beer. Why do you think they pawn it off on us Americans? Nope, this weekÂ’s beer is Dirty Bastard Scotch Style Ale by Founders Brewery.

This beer came in a squat 12 ounce bottle The label had a plaid background with a white line drawing of a pissed off Highlander and the name of the beer on it. The neck label says, “Auch! Yeh’ve nary had such a bonnie taste of heav’n since pullin’ yer mouth off yer mammy’s teet. With more highland bitties, and flavours than yer grandmammy’s haggis, Dirty Bastard Ale ain’t fer the wee lads. And if it’s too strong fer yer silk-wearin’, poodle-walkin’ arse. Then it’s back to the lock with you, Nessy!” (That is EXACTLY how it is on the label. I think we may have found the official beer of Miasmatic Review.

When poured in the glass there is a nice thick tan head that very slowly dissipates. It leaves a nice lacing on the glass, and by the time you finish, there is still about an eighth inch head. The color is of a dark brown with ruby tints. ItÂ’s a clear beer, with no floating bits, but is thick enough that light has difficulty passing through.

The scent is a mix of sweet fruits and toasted malts. There is a toffee undertone, but a definite hint of Scotch that wafts to the nose. The scent is very pleasing. The taste is a glorious combination of beer and Scotch. There is a scotch like smoked peat flavor. You can almost taste a good oak charcoal to it. With a chocolate accent and touch of good roasted malts it brings a wonderful finish to the beer. The aftertaste is slightly bitter, but fades quickly.

Dirty Bastard Ale is a full-bodied beer. There is a nice creaminess to it. The carbonation is at a good level. ItÂ’s not biting on the tongue, but keeps the beer drinkable.

I thoroughly enjoyed this beer. Ktreva told me I should get it because she felt it fit my perfectly, Auch, back to the loch with you, Nessy! I found this to be a good combination beer. A mix of scotch and beer that is just too good to pass up. IÂ’m giving this beer a 7 out of 10.

Posted by: Contagion at 07:32 PM | No Comments | Add Comment
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