Founding Fathers: Washington D.C.

So we're in our nation's captiol this week.

Okay, I lied.  We're on the outskirts of the D.C. area on the Maryland side of the city, but from what I can tell from the news, there is abolutely nothing going on in the middle of this city worth paying attention to.  Mostly a lot of men in suits figuring out new and exiting ways to screw a lot of people over and steal a staggering amount of money.  It's probably better for everyone involved if we find a quite place to sit and weather the storm with a pint.  And I have found such a place.

Franklin's Brewery, Restruant and General Store is... well it's a little out there.  Both in scope and brewing style which is just kinda awsome.  I think the best way to describe this place is, it's like the Cracker Barrel for lunatics.  They've got a nice restruant, an attached gift shop with all sorts of eclectic wares and enough beer to keep the voices quiet for a few precious minutes.  The whole place has kind of a relaxed art house feel which is kind of cool.  That same style translates into how they brew beer which leads to some fun when it comes time to sink a few pints.

Old Miser: A winter ale with a light fruity aroma.  It's quite malty with some rich, maybe just slightly tart cherry fruit with some earthy woody notes and a slight pine bitterness.  Slightly unusual beer but excellent one. It's packs quite a bit of body but it has a very drinkable quality about it.

Highland Hugh:  No real aroma on this scotch ale.  The flavor is intently fruity with a slight rum flavor right off the top.  As the flavor continued to work through the palate I picked up some leather and some and a slightly bitter finish.

Broken Gnome:  This is a darker belgian ale with a light Bananna aroma.  The flavor contains leathery, spicy notes that kind of start out and fade into a light bed of tropical fruit that's quintessentially Belgian.  It's takes the imbiber to a weird place for a minute before returning them home a little confused but overall very pleased with the experience.

Private IPA: Typical citrusy aroma.  It's very hoppy but its one of those beers that has enough hop flavor and malt to balance the bitterness, something that I seem to be finding more and more.  Maybe it's me and the hopheads of the world are finally wearing me down. 

Hop Zen: A hoppy beer that's closer to a bitter amber ale.  Similar hop and flavor profile as the Private IPA  with a flash of caramel and toasted grains that help manage the hop bill.

Black hop down: I'm sensing a pattern in the aroma.  The dark beer qualities, black roasted grain coffee, appear in the background and serve to prop up the hops.  

Farewell to Farms: I pick up a lot of floral aroma here with a hint of caramelly sweetness.   In the flavor the sweetness and the floral hop qualities really play well together.  It's not overtly sweet but just a nice, flavorful lighter beer.

Okie Round-Up: Tulsa Oklahoma

If you're in Tulsa, Oklahoma and you're looking for a spot to grab a hold of some quality pints, there is really only one game in town, McNellies.

I talked about this beer bar way back in 2011 when I last visited this city.   On a side note, that post is still the most popular post on this whole blog by at least a factor of at least three.  I'm lead to believe that the title I selected, 'Bar Craw of Tulsa' has lead a few savage drunks astray.  Far from finding a guide to the local watering holes they came across my inane rantings... which is probably for the best.  At least they found out where the best beer was.

They actually have two locations in the city of Tulsa, and I highly recomend either.  Good food and, of course, good beer.

Since I am in Oklahoma, I focused on the far-flung local beers that, like many breweries in the southern part of the U.S. don't go in for all that brew-pub non-sense.

Mustang Brewing, Winter Lager: This has a sweet, fruity and caramelly aroma with warm toasty notes mixed in.  Mixes body with drinkability extreemly well.  Its malty with warm woody toasted flavors with just a hint of herbs to add to the complexity of this very nice winter beer.

Mustang Brewing, Mmmmhops: There is a slight hint of hops in a lightly sweet aroma.  The flavor is... well, different.  It's got a hefty malt bill that takes Northwest citrus hops and sweetens the citrus considerably.  Add a bit of light but dustinct flavor make this a sweet hoppy anomaly.

Mustang Brewing, 66: No real aroma in this light beer.  But for the style, it's actually quite nice.  The light malts support some peppery herbal hops.  It has some body to it and it's almost dangerously drinkable (who stole my pint?.... And where are my pants!)

Prairie Artisian Ales, Standard: A farmhouse ale with a heavy tropical fruit and clove aroma. Thankfully, the flavor doesn't sport quite the same punch.  It has this slightly sour homebrew flavor that's a little odd but not unpleasant. Finishes quite hoppy which arrive late as a bit of a surprise.  Overall a very nice rustic ale.

COOP Ale Works, Gran Sport Porter: I picked up some coffee and chocolate in the aroma.  It has a full-bodied and creamy flavor with some roasted coffee and unsweetened chocolate.  Standard porter qualities but still a nice cold weather beer.

COOP Ale Works, F5 IPA: This beer has an intense, citrusy herbal aroma.  There are some floral flavors in the flavor that almost go so far as to be soapy.  There is an intense bitterness that hits and sticks in the back of the throat.  Not the most pleasant IPA I've had recently.  

Dead Amradillo Brewing, Amber: Nice toasty creamy and caramelly aroma.  I picked up a toasted buttery biscuit flavor with peppery hops just peaking through. There may have been some light fruit sweetness in there as well.

Dock of the Bay: Long Beach, CA

 Stopping in for a few pints at the Belmont Brewing Company. 

You gotta love this place if only for it's ocean side location.  It provides a nice view while sucking down beers.  

It's a little more spendy then some places, but not prohibitively so.  One can still stop in for some decent eats and a couple of beers and not be squinting at the bill hoping to the gods that total is really a phone number.

That being said, nothing all that staggeringly exiting in the beer department.  Not bad, not by any means, but nothing that really sets it apart... except for the view.

And onto said beer:

Strawberry Blonde: As anticipated, this fruit beer had a pretty heavy strawberry aroma.  The beer itself is quite sweet and the strawberry flavor is very pronounced. Basically the proverbial 'beer for people who don't like beer'.  But for what it is, not bad.

Pale ale: Pretty heavy citrus hop aroma.  It is very heavy on the hops without a lot if malt to back it up so it at first taste it's more like a lighter IPA then a pale. 

Marathon Blonde: No aroma that I could detect.  Light, sweet... light ... ... that's about it. I could detect some faint fruity flavors in there but otherwise not much complexity to speak of.

Top Sail: Nice, warm toasted aroma.  Slight roasted grain character with just a touch of bitterness in the back for a simple but rather nice amber ale.

Long Beach Crude:  No real aroma to speak of again.  Full bodied unsweetened chocolate.  With a slight herbal licorice quality.   Dry finish.  Very nice dry stout 

Just for the Helg of it IPA:  This IPA is brewed with a rather novel hop from Western Australia known as the Helga hops.  The aroma seems pretty familiar, citrusy, slightly spicy and floral.  In the flavor, the hop character is tempered nicely so there a ton of flavor without a lot of bitter.  Drinkable but pack full of citrusy floral flavor.  One of the better IPA's I have had for the sheer amount of hop flavor they managed to pack in while still making it palatable.