Blue Moon Vintage Blonde Ale 2012

I like Blue Moon, they brew good beers and I knew that they discontinued their Grand Cru not long ago. I was in my local grocery store and I saw this big 25.5 fl oz or 1 pint 1.9 oz bottle of Blue Moon and wondered what it was. I took one of course. Only comes in this size. This Vintage Blonde 8.5% ABV, won the gold metal at the 2010 Great American  Beer Festival. This beer is crafted with Chardonnay grape juice and all-wheat grain. This is also kind of celler-aged, but I'm not sure for how long. Blue Moon says with this you can enjoy this now or you can set it aside for the right moment. I've had this sitting for about three weeks or so. I saved it when my brothers family came in. The appearance on this Blue Moon looks almost like some of the Blue Moons beers, deep orange almost dark gold, with a finger of white head that rather quickly and had tiny bubbles with in the head. Not a whole lot of light getting through the glass, but that is normal on most wheat beers. Not much lacing to it, but there was some to little. There was a huge sweet grape scent with a wine like grape juice aroma. Very powerful scent on this ale. Wow big huge scents and aromas! I also found that wine Chardonnay scent there as well under that all those grape aromas. This had a sweet grape wine scent over all. Taste on this was not what I was expecting, but not bad. First there is a big sweet grape like taste, almost like you're eating fresh sweet grape. Then you get that nice sweet grape juice, but it has more of a wine like taste. You do get a tiny bit of a nice wheat flavor that's surronds all grape taste but nothing like a German wheat beer. The finish on this wasn't dry like some Chardonnays can be, but it was crisp sweet and refreshing. Overall I would give this a C+, just not what I was expecting from this. I was thinking it would be more like a Belgian golden strong ale with a  little sweetness, but not a bad beer, tasty stuff from this Blue Moon. It reminded me of a saison a little bit. I also thought that this had a little more hype to this then it had taste. The taste didn't match the hype with this. This seems like a more of a special brew and it was good but not wow knock my socks off kind of good. It did say limited edition on the bottle neck, but that was just because they don't brew a whole lot of this, but didn't taste as special as some limited editions brews I've had. It was good as I'd hoped, still a C+ from me. Yes I recommend this and to cellar this. So pick up two, one to have now and one to age for a little while. Cheers! Please enjoy responsibly!    

Palmetto Charleston Lager

Over this past Labor day weekend my family and I took a trip down to Charleston South Carolina and stayed in Folly Beach. While there I saw this and thought it would be fun and interesting to try. So I picked up a six pack from the local Piggly Wiggly to give this a try. This is brewed and bottled in Charleston, SC by the Palmetto brewing company. They clam to be souths oldest brewery, circa 1880, and use steam in the brewing process. This here is their Charleston Lager 5.4% ABV. This Lager pours a dark gold to an orange color and is light, I could see through the glass. There was a quarter finger white head that dissipated quickly. This had lots of little carbonation bubbles racing towards the top with some little lacing but not much. Not very exciting in the looks department on this one, but most lagers don't have extremely good looks, some do but not this. The smells on this are of wet paper and some dry corn, not very pleasing at all. There was a hint of a tin scent, like a tin or aluminum can/foil. The taste on the Charleston Lager was not at all great, I found there to be a metallic taste that was a little dry and the tiniest bit bitter. There was a little malt taste around the metallic taste but it's not a good taste. The finish on this is dry and metallic, a tiny bit bitter and just bad. This is not good, not even they slightest bit crisp and refreshing. This is the first time having any of Palmeto's beers and if this is anything on how the rest of their beer are, I am not impressed or does this make me what to try any of there other beers. But I might be wrong about their other brews, but I am skeptical. Over all I would give this a D, just because it is boring tasteless and to me not well brewed. But it is not bad enough for me to pour this out, but close though. I would rather I have a Shiner Blond. I don't recommend this at all. But you might try it and like it, I just did not like it. Cheers! Please enjoy responsibly!

Samuel Adams Summer Ale

Well I seem to have found yet another summer brew in my fridge, and this one I bought, I bought just one twelve oz for a beer tasting on wheat beer I did last spring for my family this past spring. This one was one of the left overs. Samuel Adams is a much larger well known craft brewery in Boston MA. Most of their beers a middle of the road and average. This is their summer ale 5.3% ABV, is a wheat ale brewed with lemon peal and grains of paradise. This ale pour almost a deep orange hazy like color with a half to one finger white head that disappears quickly and leaves some to little lacing. There is a nice amount of carbonation with this ale. There is a big lemon scent all over this with slight hints of grains almost like a plane cereal smell. The smell on this was a bit sour like and not so pleasing. The taste of the summer ale is a huge bitter lemon with very week to almost no wheat flavor, at first. But then there is less sourness to the lemon as hits the back of your tongue, with a little more wheat flavors, but none to good. The finish on this is plane overly lemony but not a great lemon. It's kind of off on the whole lemon flavor. This Sam Adams is a bit crisp until you get to the lemon. I think this is just way to average and somewhat not as good as it sounds, much like most Sam Adams beers. But I have to give credit where credit is do, they are pretty creative, experimental and crafty on there beers, and they can be quite interesting. But over all not so good. I am not a big fan or Sam Adams and their beers. I would give this a D+. This summer ale isn't the worst thing I've ever had, I mean I did finish this. There are much better summer beers out there, like Shiner Ruby Redbird, which I have reviewed all ready and is a very delicious tasting beer and very well brewed. I don't think I will be have this Sam Adams Summer Ale again, maybe way way into the future I mighty. I do not recommend this at all But yes there are much better summer beers are out there go forth and find, and try them. Cheers! Please enjoy responsibly!

Bell's Oberon Ale

Here we have Bell's Brewery beer. The Bell's brewery is quit popular, they are in Comstock Michigan. I am reviewing this because I received an email from Manny Brito from Florida asking my thoughts on this, but I told that I had it a while back, and I that I would have to properly review this, and I am now. So Manny hope you enjoy this review. This Oberon Ale is a 5.8% ABV american wheat ale summer seasonal. I rather like wheat ales. They can be really refreshing and a great style. Oberon pours a rich orange color, a bit hazy, with half to almost on finger with head that faded rather quick. This does have nice lacing to it, but not a whole lot. The lacing does come and go as you get toward the bottom of the bottom of the glass, it isn't there all the way though the drinking. I fond a big orange scent, but not really the normal orange scent, it was more of spicy, peppery orange, orange rind or clementine scent. First taste is the sweet orange and the slight pepper spice flavor. But followed right behind that there is a very slight spicy hop note they that was a bit unexpected and a somewhat not so good, but that didn't really bother me so much. The hop not here is in no way Pale Ale or and IPA like. Not bad, just not expected and not as good as I hoped. This has a medium mouth feel overall, not to bad. The finish is a little less hoppy, spicy and more sweet citrus orange to it but you do get more of the alcohol on the end but nothing overly alcoholic, Oberon ale has a low abv%. The finish is nice, refreshing, and good. I would give this a B-, just because it had more spicy flavor to it, and the wheat here is on the lower flavor side. But whenever I review any sort of wheat beer I have thought of the best German wheats in the back of my mind. I guess I compair them to a true highly rated German wheat beers. Kind of not so fair, but this Bell's is not bad. I would have this again, somewhat soon but not too soon. I didn't love this but I liked just finen, B- overall from me and The Best Beer Blog. If you want an A+ wheat beer try any Ayinger wheat beer, Weizen-Bock is the best! Cheers! Please enjoy responsibly!

Lindemans Framboise Lambic

Now here is a fascinating style of beer, Framboise. The Framboise style comes from Belgium and is from barley, unmalted wheat, and wild yeast. After spontaneous fermentation, then fruit added after that. Then secondary fermentation occurs. This Lambic beer has raspberries add to it. This brewery has been doing this since 1811. In my own opinion, they brew some of the best Lambics. This Lambic here has a low alcohol level of 2.7% ABV. It could be deadly due to the great fruitiness and just how tasty it is. It also has a large amount of carbonation. This beer is one of the only beers I have seen with both a pry-off cap and a cork. Well, I must say this one has been in my refrigerator for almost a year>  I am not sure, but it seems close, and I have one left. I like to give a shoutout to an Instagram friend Champagnesupernovax, and she said she wants to try this and is looking forward to reading this. Enjoy! Please follow her if you're on Instagram. This Framboise Lambic pours a dark red, almost blood-red color, very dark with no light seen through this, and there was a light red rose or radish one and a half finger head that was a bit slow on the fade. This beer has a good raspberry scent, and there is a yeasty smell there with a big sweet fruit candy-like scent too. It's all nice on your nose. When you taste this, you get a raspberry syrup taste that is tart, both sweet and bit sour. It's a good sour, nothing overpowering. I found this to have a much different wheat taste that I am used to with wheat or wheat-like beer. It wasn't malt-forward wheat to it like some. You do get a yeast flavor, but it's more of a less uniform yeast or average yeast flavor that you would get in other yeasty beers. Please, when you get to the middle of the glass and give it a nice swirl to mix the yeast, wheat, and raspberries. But as this Framboise Lambic hits the back of you get a little good tart raspberry. This finish is a bit more tart than the start, but it finishes nice and is very pleasing on you're taste buds. The overall tart raspberry flavor here. I would give this beer an A+. You can have this fresh or cellar it a while, but when you do have it, serve this at 38 - 41 F. I have always liked this style, just so different from other beer styles and just easy to drink and is refreshing with fruit flavors here. Brouwerij Lindemans Framboise is a great place to start. You should pick one up. I highly recommend you do. Cheers! Please enjoy responsibly!    

The Best Beer Blog Top Ten Beers

In recognition of one hundred reviews/blog post. Here are the The Best Beer Blogs top ten beers of the blog:

10.  Epic Brainless on Peaches

9.  Baltica Wheat

8.  Rahr & Sons Ugly Pug

7.  Ayinger Celebrator Dopplebock

6.  Lausitzeer Porter

5.  Samuel Smith's Nut Brown Ale

4   Samuel Smith's Organic Apricot Ale

3.  Old Mecklenburg Fruh Bock

2.  Aecht Schlenkerla Rauchbier Weizen

1.  Anyinger Weizen-Bock 

Man those are awesome beers! I really enjoyed them all and will be looking forward to have them again. Cheers! Please enjoy responsibly! 

Pyramid Curve Ball Blonde Ale

The Best Beer Blog has reached a milestone yesterday, one hundred posts up, and we age still going strong. So here is number one hundred one. Here we have Pyramid Curve Ball Blonde Ale (lager ale), blonde ale is reminiscent of German Style Kolsch. This blonde ale is cold conditioned lager, which is letting the beer sit in a cold temperature before bottling or going into a keg. Good for a summer blonde ale. This beer has a lighter or lower ABV at 5.0% ABV. Curve Ball pours a golden orange color with half to one finger head that was thin and white and disappeared quickly, but did slow up in the sides of the glass. There is a tiny amount of lacing on the glass but not enough. This Curve Ball just looks like an average blonde ale. Thats not a bad thing though. I found this not to have a lot on scents and smells, but what I did find is a big citrusy orange almost sweet smell and not much else. Tasting this ale I found it to be very smooth with a mild crisp orange taste that didn't last long on the tongue. I found no traces of hops here, I could say that the taste and flavors of this are boringly average, but not what I'd call bad. This Pyramid flavor is refreshing and easy to drink. The finish is nice crisp, smooth and refreshing with just a hint of the mild citrus. The Pyramid Brewery does a great job on brewing beer, and they're other beers are great. But this here is plain and average in my book. Overall I would give this a C, just because it has plain average flavor and the whole beer is not made with strong flavorful ingredients and isn't try to hard to be over the top. That can be good in some beers, and here not so much. But this here is easy to drink, great on a hot summers day, and should be canned too. I will say that this is a better average choice than say a Bud, Miller, Coors, ect. Yes I would have this again I liked it enough, not a strong like but I like it non the less. I really like the Pyramid brewery and will continue to drink they're great beers. This isn't one of my favorites from them, but its just okay. Would I recommend Curve Ball? Yes but to an average beer drinker that isn't in the know about good beer or craft beer. Cheers! Please enjoy responsibly!

Craft beers along the beach.

Over the nice labor day weekend my family and I went to Folly Beach South Carolina. A nice place just southwest of Charleston, SC. Everything was in walking distance from the condo we rented there. While I was there I found this small place on the main street of Folly Beach, The Folly Beach Brewing Company, a very nice craft beer bar/pub. Very good selection of beer, bottled and on tap. Not a huge draft selection, but a good selection that rotates often. This place even had growler fills and you could even buy bottles to go. The atmosphere was great, laid back with great music and some sports on a tv. The bartender was very nice and friendly as was the owner who was busy, service was good, and the location is great. They do have some live music on Saturday nights. I walked there and walked back, not far from most things/places, close to the beach too.

The Folly Beach Brewing Company is a place I would go back to. I would highly recommend this place to anyone look for a nice place to have great beer. I had the most wonderful time there and hope I get to go back again real soon. Overall I give this an A. Could have had more taps but it was great stuff on tap very nice nice beers. The Bells Amber on tap was great, thats an A- beer in my opinion. If you get to Folly Beach or are close by, please head to The Folly Beach Brewing Company and tell them you heard it for TheBest-BeerBlog. Cheers! Please enjoy responsibly! 

Samuel Smith's Imperial Stout

I thought I would taste this and review this because I was digging through my blog and saw a lot of lighter beer recently and somewhat overall. So I though why not do a stout and I will review more stouts, browns and porters later on. But I am starting with a prime example of a true Imperial Stout. An Imperial Stout or Russian stout is one that was originally brewed and shipped to Imperial Russia and was a favorite of Russian Nobility. Today there are a number of different imperial beer out there, like imperial pilsner, imperial IPA, imperial lager and so on. That just mean that is double the alcohol volume, and has a stronger taste. But this here is a true orignal imperial stout from England, at 7.0%ABV. This Sam'l Smith is fermented in stone Yorkshire squares, which is basically a large square tub or vat made of local stone. This Samuel pours a dark brown/black dark roast coffee color, with a big light brown to tan thick two finger bubbly rocky head. I saw the head and I thought of nice brownish hearty bread. Nice appearance on the imperial stout. Now the taste on this is common to stereotypical to this style. This has a nice roasted coffee, that dark robust coffee, The kind I like. This has a dark fruity scent of raisins and figs. I got bit of the alcohol there as well. The way this looks and smells really intrigues me to drink this. Drinking this Sam'l Smith you first get that rich dark coffee taste, followed by a raisin and fig note that is simi-sweet. I also found a nice chocolate note there, but wasn't a real sweet chocolate taste, but the dark fruits, raisin and figs help make that chocolate a bit sweet. This imperial stout has a big mouth feel that has a very little warming feel to it as you go though it  It was more of a good bakers chocolate, and I didn't get much of the 7.0% alcohol. This bee here is a bit on the heavy side but just enough, it's not overly heavy like some stouts can be. The aftertastes really stick in your mouth with this. The finish is nice with a faintly sweet  coffee finish. This imperial stout in not a very bitter but has some bitterness, the IBU (international bitterness unit) of this is 35. Samuel Smith's India Ale is 46 IBU, some beers can be as higher. Overall this is a great old world example of a great Imperial Stout. Samuel Smiths brewery has some of the best examples of English beers and the are all organic. I would recommend this and all of Samuel Smith's beer to anyone looking to get into the world of beer. So over all I would give this beer an A+. Just a very good example of a nice nice imperial stout. I was really enjoyed this as I do most Samuel Smith's beer. A great representation of an English Imperial Stout. Please go out and get this and all of Samuel Smiths beer, I highly recommend you do! Cheers! Please enjoy responsibly!  

Shiner Hefeweizen

Well I've just reviewed a similar beer to this Blue Moon Summer, so I though I would review this, Shiner Hefeweizen, 5.4% ABV. This Hefeweizen ale is brewed with wheat, orange and lemon peal with clover honey added and is unfiltered, and bottle conditioned. That means that this hefeweizen keeps brewing in the bottle. You will have sediment in the bottom of the bottle. So yes it is similar to the Blue Moon Summer. This comes from Shiner Texas out of the Spoetzl brewery, named after Cosmos Spoetzl the founder and head brewmaster way back in 1909 when he founded the brewery. But any way this pours a dark hazy orange color with a barely any head, it faded away fast. Not much lacing on this either and there is lots of carbonation. There is lots of citrus scents. Oranges and lemons dominate here with a small hint of sweet clover honey. I didn't get much wheat scent on this but there was a very small wheat like scent. This has a nice wheat taste to it, much better than Blue Moon Summer's wheat flavor. There is a big orange flavor that covers you tongue as the sweetness from the honey, but it isn't a honey taste, just sweet like honey, finishes it. I didn't really get any of the lemon or any tartness from the lemon, which is okay because I don't think this needs that at all. But the lemon did add nice flavor to the overall citrus flavors. The finish is a nice wheat and orange flavor. This is not heavy on the wheat, but medium bodied, crisp and refreshing. You don't want a heavy wheat beer on a hot or warm day, fill you up and could make your stomach upset. The Shiner Brewery is a better brewery than Blue Moon, but Blue Moon still does a very decent job, but Shiner does it better. This hefe is a better beer than the Blue Moon Summer, because of the better wheat flavors and the nice sweet citrus flavors. I like them both, but this Shiner Hefe edges out the Blue Moon Summer. I like Shiner beers a but better than Blue Moon. Shiner has more interesting and great flavorful variety of brews. The beers Shiner brews aren't not the same like some of the Blue Moons and have more of a new twist on the old world brews.  I give this a A, just one step better than the Blue Moon Sumer. Try them both and see for yourself and you might be pleasantly surprised. Cheers! Please enjoy responsibly!      

Blue Moon Summer Honey Wheat

This is the last of Blue Moon Sumer Honey Wheat ale 5.2% ABV. You're not going to find this on your store shelves. Most summer beers are nearly gone if not completely going already. Blue Moon has replaced this with They're Harvest Beer, which is a pumpkin ale, and is a good solid beer. Try and pick one up if you can. Blue Moon brews all of its beers as wheat ales, what's keeps them different is the other ingredients in they're seasonal beer, like here in the summer beer with clover honey. This honey comes from bees that feed primarily on clove nectar of clover plants. But as always there is orange peel in this like all Blue Moons have, and most wheat or Wit ales have. Blue Moon is a half way craft brewer due to the fact that Coors owns them and I would say it is similar to Shocktop by Anheuser Busch, but Blue Moon is better in my book, has more of a craft feel to the whole brewery and they're beers. Blue Moon has a few awards to they're name. The Summer here has the 2010 GABF (Great American Beer Festival) gold metal for specialty honey beer. This isn't a new beer been around for quite sometime now, even had a name change from Honey Moon to Blue Moon Summer. This wheat here pours a nice deep orange color with lost of bubbles big carbonation, they do cling to the sides as they go. There is no head it was so thin and went very quickly. How's this smell, well it has a sweet scent of honey and a touch of a citrus note, kind of orangey. There is also a very faint flowery scent. On the first taste I got a hit of orangey wheat and then on the back of that there was a big honey sweetness, but was crisp and refreshing. The wheat in this is very light, not like most wheat ales, German and otherwise. The key tastes in this is orange and honey. Blue Moon Summer has a nice crisp sweet finish that is of a nice sweet honey orange. This is not the best wheat ale, but this is an awesome summer ale and very well balanced, crisp, smooth and refreshing. I've always found Blue Moon to brew great beers, but I still think this is a half way craft brewery, because 98% of they're beers are so similar to each other being mostly wheat ale, being the three flagship brews. They do brew a nice Belgian Pale ale, Winter abby, Peanut Butter and a Raspberry Cream all just to name a few. Blue Moon is creative I will give them that and I like that. Overall I would give this an A- just because the wheat aspect of this isn't great, its good enough, but they have nailed it with everything together on this. I will continue to have this as I have done and go and pick some up and try. Cheers! Please enjoy responsibly!  

Newcastle Summer Ale

Ah yes there is a little bit of summer left in the world and it comes from England. This is Newcastle's summer ale, an English bitter at 4.4% ABV. Not so big on the alcohol level, nice. This beer is a seasonal beer and it only available in the summer months. This Newcastle is nearly going most stores are out of this or going to be out in a couple weeks, days. Newcastle already has the fall seasonal beer out, Werewolf. Newcastle summer pours a clear light amber with a fluffy white two finger head. There is a bitter hop  and malt scent with a big grassy floral note there too. I found it to be a much different scent to a summer ale than what I am normally used to. This Newcastle's taste is of nice malted citrus and a nice bitter hops. This has a nice crisp balanced flavor to this as well and is medium bodied. The finish is a nice low bitterness that has a low mild wine character to it. Finishes very well nice crisp and is a bit refreshing. This Newcastle Summer Ale is a nice change from you typical summer beer. This is a beer you can have a few of, because of it low ABV percent. This is not the best summer I've had, but the fact that is different from all other makes it a good, as does its well balance and good tasting. This is well done and overall a good different summer ale. I give this a B overall. Would I have this again, yes and I have since I first came across it three years ago. I would have this again next summer, but I think this could be good year round. Well done Newcastle. Cheers! Please drink responsibly!  

Samuel Smith's Nut Brown Ale

Here we have yet another fabulous Samuel Smith beer, this being they're nut brown ale 5.0% ABV. I had this down in Folly Beach South Carolina at a wonderful craft beer bar there, The Folly Beach Brewing Company. Please check it out and see how great of a place it is. Bog post to come soon on that bar. England is well known for brewing this mildly dark style or beer.  This style, English brown ale,  is brewed using English and Noble hops. This here is a prime example of that. This brown ale pours a rich brown to a chestnut brown  color almost black with a a thick bright two fingered white head. Very pleasing to look at in a glass. Sexy even. I get a big rich nutty scent on this with a nice hit of coco or chocolate but not a lot of chocolate scent just a little. This brown's nutty aroma had a bit of a rasteds nut to it as well that was a reminder of roasted chestnuts. Again a very pleasant scent. Now the taste has a nutty flavor that is smooth rich and velvety with a slight hint of coco and chocolate. This Sam'l Smith is smooth, easy to drink. This has a nice mildly sweet taste as well that does not over power your taste buds. It's just right in my mind. The finish is nice and smooth with a nice nuttiness that is has a touch of roasted chocolate that is faint but present. Over all this Samuel Smith's Nut Brown Ale is very well done and very delicious. I would most certainly have this again real soon. I give this an A. Very well done, very good. You should go out and try this NOW! Cheers! Please drink Responisbly!