The Boston Beer Co. Tour: A Tale of Woe

Sam Adams Brewery
Sam Adams Brewery - From the Outside

This week I traveled to Boston for work.

I arrived late Wednesday night, and visited with our customer on Thursday.  By 3 PM, the client I was meeting with had another meeting, so we decided to call it a day.  I had expressed some interest in visiting the Boston Beer Co., so he suggested I should check it out.

After quickly stopping by my hotel room to change and look up the brewery address, I took off at about 3:15 PM.  As a bit of foreshadowing, when I was leaving my hotel room, I talked myself out of calling and asking when the tours were conducted.  I had my eyes on the prize and nothing could stop me now.

The trip from the north side of Boston was fairly quick; I only ran into traffic in one of the tunnels, and I made it to the brewery by about 4:15 PM.  The brewery is located in a residential area, with no other businesses around.  I pulled in and parked my rental car, walked to the tour area, only to find the tours stopped and gift shop closed at 3:00.  That’s 3 o’clock in the afternoon.  A bit confused, I looked around for another way in, but there was nothing I could do.

It was sad.  From outside the brewery walls, I could smell the hops and feel beer being made, but I could neither see nor taste the gloriousness within the walls.  Before I left, I took a quick photo for posterity (above), “hopped” in my car and left…

… but not all was lost.  I drove straight from the brewery to another brewery, the Beer Works in Lowell, which was only a couple miles from my hotel.  As soon as I walked in, I knew I would enjoy myself because the server told me they didn’t sell any commercial beer or hard liquor, just their own beers and some wine.  There I had some dinner, enjoyed several of the craft beers, and met some great folks who lived in the building up the block.

Just to give you an idea how long I was there, one of the guys I was hanging out with closed his tab, went home, then came back later because “it was boring at home”.  That’s my kind of guy.

So, to the fellas I hung out with last night, next time I’m in north Boston, I’ll look you up.  And to the Boston Beer Co., really?  3 PM?

Michelob Irish Red

Michelob Irish Red
Michelob Irish Red

Yesterday, I had a chance to sample Michelob Irish Red. The bottle shape and label were done nicely and caught my eye. The pour of the beer into a glass displayed a nice copper color you would expect in an Irish Red, and had a tan head that dissolved into the glass quickly.

The first sniff was a sweet malty aroma, but not one that really excited me.   There were similar smells to other Anheuser-Busch products.  Mouth feel was surprisingly full, but taste was sub-par by my standards. The hop to malt balance in the flavor was good, but there was the same stale sweetness picked up in the initial smell, maybe due to the yeast used in the fermentation process. The taste finished fairly clean, but did hold on for a little while.

I would recommend this beer if you like inexpensive Anheuser-Busch products, because that is what it is. Definitely a drinkable beer for the money, but personally, I would pay the extra money to get a Samuel Adams Irish Red or even a good ol’ Killian’s Irish Red Lager.

Have you tried the Michelob Irish Red?  What did you think?

Good, Better, and Best Beer to Enjoy on St. Patty’s Day

Lovely Day for a Guinness!
Lovely Day for a Guinness!

It’s that time of year again, when you get out your green, and celebrate your Irish-ness, even if you aren’t Irish.  Now, there is a hierarchy to quality of beer on St. Patrick’s day, and I’m going to break it down for you.

Here’s the category breakdown:

Good: Green beer.  This is what most folks think of when they think of St. Patrick’s day.  This is usually no more than your regular run-of-the-mill light beer with green dye in it.  It’s pretty boring and not very exciting, except it’s green.

Better: Killian’s Irish Red, Michelob Irish Red.  These are a couple of brews that don’t fall into your green-beer category, but are still owned by the big guys.  They are close to your craft-brewed products, but they are not as good.  One advantage to these is that they are usually available.

Best: Boulevard Irish Ale, Samuel Adams Irish Red, Guinness, Harp, Kilkenny, Smithwick’s, Raccoon River Stonecutter Stout, Gray Brewing Co. Busted Knuckle Irish Style Ale, etc.  Many of these beers are either made in Ireland, or are craft brews that are made by some excellent craft brewers who strive to create an authentic Irish-style stout, Irish Style Red Ale, or other Irish beer.  If you can get your hands on these, this is the best choice.  You’ll thank me later!

So, when you decide what to have to celebrate today, just go for one of the “Best” beers, because that’s what St. Patty’s is all about!  Enjoy the best!

The Beer Glass Makes a Difference

Samuel Adams New Glass
Samuel Adams "Perfect Beer Glass

If you are a fan of beer, you may notice many beer brands have their own glass.  Many Belgian-style beers, and the Guinness & Co. Brewery have created their own types of glasses.  They claim the glass makes a difference.  Within the past few years, Jim Koch of the Boston Beer Company, the makers of Samuel Adams, hired a company, TIAX, to help them develop the perfect beer glass (shown to the right, click for a larger picture) to showcase the Boston Lager.  From their website:

The key requirements for the perfect glass for Samuel Adams Boston Lager included: delivering sweetness from the malt; maximizing the hops aroma and flavor; maintaining the ideal temperature; supporting a rich and creamy head; and sustaining the right amount of carbonation.

Many restaurants have begun using this glass to serve their Samuel Adams Boston Lager.

So, do these glasses make a difference?

I recently tried the perfect glass/Boston Lager combination at a local restaurant, and I have to agree, it made my Boston Lager better.  Since this experience, I have used a goblet, tulip glass, wheat beer glass, pilsner glass, or even a wine glass to drink many of the different beers I purchase, and it has made my beer more enjoyable.

So, what of the common tapered pint glass?  It has been said that it was intended to mix drinks, and was never meant to dispense a beer.  So the next time you want to relax with a beer, a pint glass is better than out of the bottle, but the proper glass is even better and makes a world of difference.

Want to try it for yourself?  The next time you visit your local Applebee’s or Red Lobster, ask for a Samuel Adams Boston Lager in the Samuel Adams glass.  Let us know what you think!

Samuel Adams Noble Pils

Alaskan Amber
Samuel Adams Noble Pils

I had the chance to sample Samuel Adams latest seasonal today, Samuel Adams Noble Pils.  It has replaced their White Ale as the spring seasonal.  It is a Pilsner style of beer that uses 5 different types of noble hops, which are the type of hops found in the hop-growing region of Germany (4 of the 5 come from there), and the Czech Republic (1 of the 5).  More specific details can be found at beernews.org.

It was a very hop-forward type of beer with strong bitterness, and was very light and crisp.  I believe the hoppiness was much stronger that a standard Pils, and I have a feeling that folks wanting the hop-presence of a Pale Ale with the lightness of a Pils will find this very enjoyable.  Because the hops are noble, there is more of a spicy hop flavor and aroma than the standard citrusy flavor and aroma found in most U.S. pale ales.

Have you tried the Noble Pils?  What did you think?