21stA and Elysian He Said He Said

21'st Amendment and Elysian HE SAID Baltic Style Porter - Lager brewed with Pumpkin and Spices (2013)
Limited Release / Collaboration Brew.

24 fl oz. (2 cans) / $6.98 USD (1/2 the 4 pack) / 8.2% ABV

About: "I met Shaun in 1999. He walked into my Seattle pub, came over to me and said he'd always wanted to meet the Pumpkin King. Later on, while hatching a plan to colonize a planet entirely devoted to pumpkin and watermelon, I invited him to my massive pumpkin fest. Ten years later, Shaun asked if the invitation still stood. I punched him in the ribs and said yes. After some cajolery, Shaun and Nico begged me to do a pumpkin collaboration as soon as possible. I said we should brew a pumpkin beer like no other. A Baltic Porter with caraway and cinnamon in a light colored can. Courage!

Hops: German Northern Brewer, Styrian Golding / Yeast: German Lager Yeast / Malts: 2-row, Carafa II, Cara-Vienne, Dark Munich, Carafa III / Special Ingredients: Pumpkin Puree, Pumpkin Juice, Vietnamese Cinnamon, Caraway Seed."

Thoughts: Canned on 9/9/13. Drank 11/9/13. This one poured a seriously dark brown that's bordering on opaque black. The slightest hint of light comes through. The head was tan, huge, fluffed out and left the beer relatively clean. 

Smells pretty strong, and it is kinda pumpkiny. Smells like a cold pumpkin coffee without the sugar. It's pretty raw smelling. You can tell that there's spices in there, mostly a ginger like substance, but it's making the scent a little bit weird. It's got a weird fruitiness to it and kind of smells like an extinguished half smoked cigarette. Or even like the inside of a jack-o-lantern after you've had a candle burning in there all night. Raw, smoky, and a little funky.

The taste starts off just like the scent with that fruity gourd, then a ton of spice hits the mouth for a couple seconds before receding and letting that smokey dinginess have its way. There's really hardly any bitterness to this which is nice, so I suppose they didn't have to go absurdly crazy with the spices, wut-evur! It's pretty sweet for the most part, and a few seconds into the gulp it hits with a really sweet bang before getting softer. It's a bit cola like as well. A hint of grassy hops comes through about halfway and the cinnamon gets stronger as the beer warms. 

I really wish the spices were a bit more pronounced. Also, this one could use some Belgian candy sugar or brown sugar even. It's a thickly built beer as it stands though, for a lager I mean. While it's good, it leaves just a little bit to be desired, but maybe I'm just nitpicking about porters again. There's a nice boozy tone that really helps the beer along which is much appreciated. In the end it tastes like a mix of a Chirstmas beer and an Pumpkin brew.

21'st Amendment and Elysian HE SAID Belgian Style Tripel - Ale brewed with Pumpkin and Spices (2013)

Limited Release / Collaboration Brew. 

24 fl oz. (2 cans) / $6.98 USD (1/2 the 4 pack) / 8.2% ABV

About: "I met Dick in 2010. He walked into our San Francisco pub, came over to Nico and me and said he'd always wanted to meet the watermelon guys. Later on, while I was knocking his block off at Rock'em Sock'em robots, Dick mentioned his little pumpkin fest and suggested we attend. One year later, Dick asked me again. Then he kicked me in the shins until I said yes. After drinking the pumpkin elixirs, I told Dick we should do a pumpkin collaboration sometime. I said we should brew a pumpkin beer like no other. A Belgian Tripel with spices in a dark colored can that's as big time as it gets.

Hops: German Northern Brewer, US Golding, Sterling / Yeast: Trappist Ale Yeast / Malts: 2-row, Aromatic, Belgian Candi Sugar / Special Ingredients: Pumpkin Puree, Pumpkin Juice, Galangal, Tarragon."

Thoughts: This one poured a really cloudy golden yellow with a very white head full of small bubbles that popped away super quick and left this one headless as a whore'sman.

Mmmm... soapy water. Man, you gotta love Trappist Ale Yeast. The stuff is wondrous. This is so perfumy. Is perfumy a word? The one smells pretty tame. The peppery yeast dominates for the most part, and if you hadn't told me that this was brewed with pumpkins I probably would have only suspected. Smells good though.

Nice fumes with that first gulp. The taste on this one is soft, sweet, crisp, mild, and features a smooth almost cider-like quality to it. Alcohol strength is evident, but comes and goes. It's got a nice spice profile and is pretty tingly whenever you take another sip. Then there's the quick bite followed by a gentle haze that takes  a while to ride out. Doesn't really taste all that much like pumpkin beer per se, but you can taste the natural pumpkin in there that they brewed with. Alcohol becomes more evident as it warms and it gets a bit tart, like sour apples.

This one is a bit light for my tastes. It tastes similar to the other HE SAID, but that's only a few of the base ingredients and based on the fact it's all made by the same dudes. These were cool to try but I don't think I'd pick this up again. The artwork is kinda weirding me out as well. Got two cans left and I'm going to try mixing them against my better judgment. 

The Baltic Porter pretty much takes over everything scent wise and taste wise as well. I guess you can't do a straight 50/50 mix with these two because it ends up being 90/10 in the end. Lifting the cans for the second time around and I find out I actually poured about one third the Baltic Porter and two thirds the Belgian Tripel and still the porter took over. The mix doesn't taste half bad, but it hasn't improved on either one of the beers individually. It tastes a lot less like that Trappist yeast and a lot more like a blend of meh. It's all good for two beers as well as two beers mixed into one, but either or all three ways, it's still missing something special that just pops. My interest feigns, much like that of the reader's of this blog.

Uncommon Brewers Golden State Ale, Siamese Twin Ale and Baltic Porter

Uncommon Brewers Golden State Ale - Ale brewed with Poppy Seeds (2012)

Brewed and Canned by Uncommon Brewers in Santa Cruz, CA. USA.

Year Round Brew.

16 fl. oz. / $2.49 USD / 6.4% ABV

About: "Our beers are unfiltered, unpasteurized, and undoubtedly uncommon. The signatures of our Golden State are the mountain quail and the poppy flower. We can't make beer with quail - yet - and so we settled upon the poppy. How better to enhance the flavor of a traditional Golden Ale than to include the tanginess of toasted poppy seeds? Our Golden State Ale  blends the sweet bite of toasted poppy with the aromatics of an simple California yeast. It's crisp and light, but carries enough body for the self-respecting beer drinker to think, "This is an uncommon ale."

Thoughts: Caramel colored, rusty copper hue with a tiny crackling sliver of a head that dissipated just after I poured it (Here's the one lucky shot of the beer with a head on it). This beer is completely foggy, murky rather, and small clusters of bubbles are clinging all over the sides of the glass.

The scent begins with a Belgian yeast. It's sweet and toasty. There are light floral notes, and it's also got a light citrus tone about it... like a little lemon, or tangerine, or perhaps both mixed. The more I lean in the more citrus I get. While it's a low flow sensation, it still smells good before it fades out as I become accustomed to it.

This beer is very flavorful for such a light scent and taste. It's smooth and malty with a gentle tingling of peppery hops. There's a slight tangy bite to it, which isn't really sour at all. Am I chewing edible flowers or eating a bagel? It's all a little unique, but nothing here is over the top... far from it. I'd say that this beer is very enjoyable, and everything is in its right place. It's a bit of a strange one.

Mouth is light, crisp, not heavily carbonated and extremely easy to drink. Though, it does leave a thin layer of film on the teeth for some reason.

This is a crisp and refreshing Belgian Ale for the summer. There's no bad afterthoughts and it left a clean, if slightly sticky taste in my mouth. The ABV is high on this one for it to feel as light as it does, but it works out great.

Uncommon Brewers Siamese Twin Ale - Ale brewed with Kaffir Lime Leaves, Lemongrass and Coriander (2012)

Year Round Brew.

16 fl. oz. / $2.49 USD / 8.5% ABV

About: "There's a long tradition in Belgian brewing of using exotic spices to enhance a beer's flavor. Although many have been tried, coriander is undoubtedly the king. In tribute to this heritage we present to you our Siamese Twin Ale. It is a traditional Belgian-style Double seasoned with coriander and entirely uncommon Thai spices. At first surprising, the floral notes of lemongrass and sharper bite of kaffir lime blend with the deep malt of this double to produce a dangerously drinkable beer. Served alongside a fiery curry or enjoyed on its own, the Twin brings a taste of the tropics to every occasion. And who doesn't need a taste of the tropics every now and then?"

Thoughts: This beer looked just like Coca-Cola right out of the can, and the head, whatever there was of it in the first place, disappeared as I poured the thing. It's a dark brown with a touch of yellow around the outer edges. I think all the carbonation left when I cracked it open, and man that had to be the fastest fizzed-out head ever.

It even smells like a fizzy soda. Like Coke mixed with Sprite, only as a beer... and with herbs. It's got a natural type scent to it though, but it's weird and there's not much else to it.

I got hit with a heavy stinging alcohol out of nowhere. Strong herbs, light Belgian yeast, and a peppery bite are this beer's main attraction. It's unexpectedly good considering how it's so lacking in the look and scent. Those lime leaves and the lemongrass really come out through the sting and give the coriander and Belgian yeast / malt base a real interesting flow.

Mouth is like a flat soda. It's slightly coating and there's a mild burn once it warms up.

I started off with major doubts about this one, but as I got half way through and finished this I became a fan - of the taste at least! It's by no means a pretty beer, far from it, (that's probably partly due to the whole Organic thing, and of course the ingredients involved here) but in the end it's still pretty tasty.

Uncommon Brewers Baltic Porter - Ale brewed with Licorice and Star Anise (2012)
Year Round Brew.
16 fl. oz. / $2.49 USD / 7.8% ABV

About: "Late in the 18th century Britain's great brewing families were working hard to break into new markets. For the Baltic Sea ports they created an export version of the traditional British Porter. Styled like an IPA to preserve them for the voyage, those profound Baltic Porters served to ward off the chill winds of that northern sea. That said, we weren't satisfied with the Baltic Porter's traditionally subtle hint of black licorice. This ale features a blend of whole licorice root and star anise to create an uncommon addition to that traditional export Porter's hearty character."

Thoughts: This one poured into a pretty deep looking black with brown edges. Though the huge bubbly head on this one faded nearly instantly (much like the company's other beers), there is an absolute ton of carbonation bubbles clinging to the glass and rising all over the place.

Took a couple whiffs and it's pretty pleasing on the nose. There's a roasted, chocolate malt tone that's enhanced nicely by the anise. A bit light on the licorice, but every ale I've ever tried with this ingredient has been so in that department. Even so, the licorice and anise really smell good here and it's giving me high hopes for the taste. Will I be let down?

Taste is... nothing but straight up coffee on the first gulp, nearly pissing me right off! There was no heavy coffee in the scent what the fuck. Take it easy Drunketh. Let's calm down and try that again: OK, so the coffee blends in a little nicer on the remainder of the brew. Seems as if it were just that first gulp that packed a punch, thankfully. Well, this one isn't at all that interesting. There's too much of a toasty coffee flavor throughout for me, even if it does fall back after a while. And while the addition of that anise is very welcome, I can't get past the fact that there just isn't enough of that black licorice flavor here.

Brew is light, fluffy, little bubbly, clean and watery.

As it warms, a little bit of a grassy tone comes through around the end of each sip. Though I'm not really a Porter guy at all (it's one of my least favorite styles), for some reason I always seem to gravitate towards the Baltic variety if ever I get the chance. I've not been too impressed by any of them, and this one is really no different. While all three of the Uncommon brews I tried were OK tasting, none of them really felt like true beer.