Hops on Pops

Day #630 Poperings Hommelbier / Brouwerij Van Eecke, Watou, Belgium
Previously from this brewery: Het Kappitel Watou Blond and another Watou Blond

Today marks the first day of the 2013 Penn State football season.  It doesn't feel like the first day.  Maybe it's me; maybe I haven't prepped and planned the way I usually do.  Maybe it's the fact the first game isn't in Beaver Stadium.  However, at 3:30pm today they kick off, so I better get myself ready for football... and fast.

Keeping the wheels turning on the glut of reviews from the trip to Belgium, and today's offering is a glass of Poperings Hommel Bier, a Belgian IPA from Brouwerij van Eecke.  In the glass you get a very bright and clear gold color, with a traditional monster white head.  Compared to other Belgian beers, this one is quite hoppy, both in aroma and taste, with mellow citrus flavors.  Whereas American hoppy beers give you pine aromas and flavors, this one has more of an herbal taste.  Earthy and green and tasty with a touch of malt sweetness, this beer is rather refreshing and enjoyable.  I'm not sure anyone is flying to Belgium to drink Hommelbier, but maybe they should.

This beer is brewed in Watou, a small town near the French border.  You'll hear more about Watou as I continue to go through beers.  This area is famous for growing hops, one of the main ingredients in beer. Therefore, a very important place from a geographic sense in the Belgian beer culture.  In fact, this beer is brewed using only locally grown hops. Outside of the beer world, this area is more famously known for being the nexus of trench warfare during the First World War.

Hi there, sexy.

Hops, in the local dialect, are known as 'hommel', and Poperinge is the name of the region where the hops are famously grown, hence the name of this beer.  If you wanted to learn more about hops than you ever thought possible... stay tuned.

Thing to Think About Today:
A few of my friends and I have recently been discussing a below the radar rap group from the early 90s, 3rd Bass. These guys are sort of like the Beastie Boys Light, although unlike the fun loving Beasties they spend considerable time rapping about the legitimacy of the rap game and societal issues facing African Americans. This is notable, as the two main members of the group were white.

Why am I discussing this?  In the spirit of Poperings and hops, I present some hip-hop in Pop Goes the Weasel, a song that tore Vanilla Ice to shreds for his pop star aspirations.  Plus, I love the hook they stole from Peter Gabriel's Sledgehammer, so that + making fun of Vanilla Ice = awesome.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HzXI_ApY4dY

P.S.  GO PENN STATE!

Day 618: Piraat Triple Hop

Some days I wish this blog wrote itself. But after 618 consecutive days, I'm too stubborn to let it fall by the wayside.

I promise that there's beer beneath that giant white head! It is the Piraat Triple Hop from Brouwerij Van Steenberge.  It poured with a fantastically full white head over a copper color ale. Interesting fact about Belgian beer: They tend to max out their hop profile right around the same place that many American beers start. That's not a disparaging comment in the least as I thoroughly enjoyed the Piraat Triple Hop.

True to its name, the aroma was strong on hops. The flavor was amazingly smooth with a good hop bite at the finish. Another interesting tidbit: The fine folks at Van Steenberge aren't happy with this name so if it makes its way to the U.S., it will most likely be under a new name!

Beer stats
Style: Belgian IPA
ABV: 10.5%
IBUs: Unknown
Rating: Excellent

Previously reviewed from Van Steenberge
We're venturing into crazy list territory with Van Steenberge so use this handy link to see what all we've reviewed!

Shout out to America!

Day #572 Infidel / Selkirk Abbey Brewing Company, Post Falls, ID
Previously from this brewery:  none; this beer is the first out the limo!

Happy Fourth of July to all of my friends out there!  I worked in the yard this morning, because that seems like a good American thing to do.  Personally, paying someone else to do the jobs we don't want to do sound pretty American as well... might have to call the guy who does my leaves to discuss additional yard work.  Rest of the day should be a lazy one here, although I'm sure the sound of fireworks in the distance and car alarms going off in my neighborhood will eventually break up any silence that I may find.

And really, if we're talking things that sound American, that list has to start with drinking craft beer made in the good old U.S. of A.  I stopped in to TJ's with a friend for a post work beer on Tuesday, and was pleasantly surprised to find a new brewery (new to me) on tap - Selkirk Abbey from Idaho.  This Belgian IPA has a light amber color with a thin, lingering head.  There's an aroma of gain and tangerine, and when you take a sip you get flavors of grapefruit, tangerine, light but earthy pine, with spice and yeast.  The finish is dry and bitter, but that's a good thing. Very interesting beer that I really enjoyed.  Not sure how a keg of this makes its way from Northern Idaho to the suburbs of Philadelphia, but I'm glad it did.

How you doin'?

This brewery started crafting beers in 1999, and from the pictures on their website, it seems like a fun place to hang out and drink beers.  As their abbey name implies, they specialize in Belgian style beers.  If I'm ever in Post Falls (stranger things have happened), I'm stopping in.

Thing to Think About Today:
With a name like Infidel, I want to drop some Che Guevara or Fidel Castro in this space.  However, it's the Fourth of July, so highlighting a Communist seems more than a small bit inappropriate.  Instead, I give you my absolutely favorite Fourth of July thing to think about: Ray Charles singing America the Beautiful.  Have I used that in this space before?  Yes.  To make up for that, I'll give you a different version than I used last year.  This version throws in a few guest stars for your watching/listening pleasure.  Happy birthday, America.  You still look pretty damn good for your age.  And to you, the reader, I hope your holiday is all smiles and sunshine and fireworks and glow sticks and dance parties and time well spent with loved ones. Enjoy and see you soon!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W1GEpg0c1fw

Sweet. No, Really.

Day #477 Le Freak / Green Flash Brewing Company, San Diego, CA
Previously from this brewery: Top 25 selection Rayon Vert, Palate Wrecker, Imperial IPA, Marci's sampler, and my sampler + a shoutout the greatest burger I've ever had.

Happy Easter to all my peoples!  For those not familiar, today is the day Jesus invented a bunny who goes around and hides eggs, and we all eat chocolate to celebrate.  Or.... something like that, I don't quite recall.  All kidding and super subtle jabs at religion aside, I do hope you get to spend the day with your loved ones, and I do hope you have some awesome candy working for you.  I currently wish I had jelly beans; preferably green and yellow ones.  Who wants to come and bring me an Easter basket?  Not everyone at once, please.

The beer for today is a bottle of Le Freak from one of my all time favorite breweries, Green Flash. This beer is crafted by merging two styles together, a Belgian Tripel and an Imperial IPA, to combine the best of Belgian yeast and American hops.  In the glass, this beer is a cloudy dark gold hue, with a thin edge of head. Your nose finds the aroma of citrus (orange, mostly) and yeast, and the taste balances a malt sweetness with a nice hop bite.  There are notes of lemon, yeast, grass, and some faint banana.  Really a fantastic beer, and one very well worth your time.  If you see this on the shelf, buy it immediately.

 Nice, crooked picture.  Typical.

And best of all?  This beer was a gift from a friend who brought home some big bottles from her recent trip to San Diego.  More on her contributions to come soon enough, but for now walk away with this important lesson: beer makes an awesome gift!!

Thing to Think About Today:
I do sincerely hope you got something sweet in your Easter baskets.  And if not, that's just fine because I'm sharing something sweet with you right here.  Matthew Sweet, and his early 90s hit I've Been Waiting.  Sweet!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7gQqR8x8dR4

"I didn't think I'd find you / Perfect in so many ways"

Beer 313: Manayunk Brewing Company's St. Alpha

Who would have guessed that a bar I frequented 14 years ago as a regular Friday or Saturday night hang would deliver a pretty tasty beer for my beer blog today? Not me. I couldn't tell you the last time I set for in the Manayunk neighborhood of Philadelphia, let alone the premises of the Manayunk Brewing Company.  Was their beer this good 14 years ago? If so, why did I waste all that time drinking margaritas there? 2012 Marci needs to go back and slap 1998 Marci. Sheesh.

Thankfully Manayunk Brewing Company distributes their beer in the area and I found this one one draught at Pinocchio's Beer Garden in Media (Pennsylvania).  FYI...Pinocchio's has a substantial list of draught beers and an impressive bottle shop. Be warned. The great selection of individual bottles of beer is nearly overwhelmed by the insane layout of the bottle shop. It made me want to pull my hair out. Long, narrow space. Coolers on one side. Cashier and walk up bar on the other. Too many people milling about drinking. Why weren't they in the bar drinking? I just wanted to shop and hit the road and, man, that was a challenge.

But I digress. The St. Alpha is a hybrid of two different styles -- a Belgian and an IPA.  From Manayunk's website, I learned that it contains ingredients from both sides of the pond. Aromas of apricot and banana from the Belgian yeast combine with the piney, citrusy aroma of American hops to create a wonderfully complex bouquet. This golden-colored ale's taste is dominated by the assertive bitterness of the hops while maintaining a balance that will please fans of both Belgian and hoppy American styles of beer. 8.5% ABV, 65 IBUs.

Here's what I thought.  It poured a light golden honey color with very little to no head. The aroma is fruity but I didn't pick up on any banana.  The banana comes out in the taste for me. There was also some nice black pepper dancing about. The flavor also revealed some resinous hops. Pine is a pretty dominant taste. I wrote in my notes that it is a very hoppy Belgian. A bit unusual but quite good.

Cheers!