Hill Country Beer Club

European
August 19, 2011

Brewer	Beer	Vintage	Score
Zatecky Pivovar	Zatec Dark Lager	2011	83
Smuttynose Brewing Company	IPA	2011	85
St. James's Gate (Diageo)	Guinness Foreign Extra Stout	2011	88
Evil Twin Brewing	Before, During and After Christmas	2011	93
Sentry Brewing	Dark Summer	2011	86
Sentry Brewing	Shakti Mama	2011	88
Fuller's Brewery	Gales' Prize Old Ale	2011	87
Brouwerij Sterkens	St. Sebastian Grand Cru	2011	88
Mikkeller	Big Worse	2011	93

Who Offered: NOSS

Summary

83	Zatecky Pivovar Zatec Dark Lager Dunkel \| 5.7% ABV \| Unknown IBU Offered By:

Member Notes:
"This Czech lager has a sweet, grainy aroma with notes of banana, roasted malt, slight peat and wood, subtly soapy. It looks thin, dark and somewhat transparent.Smooth in the mouth with a flavor more mellow than its aroma. Full, roasted, and with only a light lager finish. Very nice." - noss

85	Smuttynose Brewing Company IPA IPA \| 6.6% ABV \| Unknown IBU Offered By:

88	St. James's Gate (Diageo) Guinness Foreign Extra Stout Foreign Stout \| 7.5% ABV \| Unknown IBU Offered By:

Member Notes:
"Sweeter and smoother in aroma than what you commonly see in the States, Foreign Extra is not as dry, with delicious roasted notes. It’s even great served near room temperature. In my opinion, incalculably better than Guinness Stout, so much so that you wouldn’t in a million years think these beers were brewed by the same outfit. Sweet, smooth, full and delicious, with a little bitterness in the finish. A great beer! " - noss

93	Evil Twin Brewing Before, During and After Christmas Imperial/Double IPA \| 8% ABV \| Unknown IBU Offered By:

86	Sentry Brewing Dark Summer IPA \| 8% ABV \| Unknown IBU Offered By: NOSS

88	Sentry Brewing Shakti Mama Imperial IPA \| 8.3% ABV \| Unknown IBU Offered By: NOSS

87	Fuller's Brewery Gales' Prize Old Ale Old Ale \| 9% ABV \| Unknown IBU Offered By:

Member Notes:
"This highly coveted old ale smells really sour, no doubt thanks to the flora that’s kept vintages of this beer fermenting for aeons. The potency of this brown-colored ale’s sourness almost reminds me of a sour ale.The flavor is dominated by light sour notes and a little wood, making for a really smooth beer. Smooth, easy, and incredibly complex, this beer could easily use more time to mature and tone down the harshness of all this beer’s complexities." - noss

88	Brouwerij Sterkens St. Sebastian Grand Cru Belgian Strong Pale \| 9% ABV \| Unknown IBU Offered By:

Club/Brewer Notes:
Brewed at Scheldebrouwerij for Sterkens

93	Mikkeller Big Worse Barley Wine \| 12% ABV \| Unknown IBU Offered By:

Member Notes:
"Apparently I find this to be a much greater beer than many others who have reviewed it do. But that’s okay… If you like muddy, gritty, almost flat barley wines: not the pretty, thin, filtered, boring ones, this is a great beer.There’s nothing pretty about this beer (which is what makes it attractive to me). An unfiltered, muddy ruby-brown colored ale with little-to-no carbonation and only a thin ring of bubbles around the edge of the surface/glass. The aroma is of alcohol and malts, almost reminiscent of a Belgian quad with hints of barley wine goodness. Once you take a sip, tough, your tongue takes the wheel from your nose and renders it nearly useless.This is a lively treat for such a muddy brew with a nice alcoholic bitterness and almost woody notes. As it warms, more of the sweetness and flavors present themselves. This makes my cheeks very happy. What an absolute delight on the palate. I can’t figure out why others aren’t scoring this higher." - noss