We’re in the home stretch to Christmas and we’re doing a four-day beer tasting we call “The Four Days of BEER-MAS”! Tonight, we continue our trip through the Clown Shoes Beer pack, “The 12 Beers of Christmas”! This will take the first three days of our journey and we will finish off with a random winter beer sampling at the end to send you into Christmas happy!
So, pour yourself your favorite alcoholic or non-alcoholic beverage, sit down, kick back and join us for the second night of “The 4 Days of BEER-MAS”!
Our next beer is…
BEER: Royal Standard (Wee Heavy Ale)
ABV: 8%
MATT: 4/5
DANIELLE: 4.5/5
LOOK: Clear, copper-colored
SCENT: Hops, wheat, heavy malt
MOUTHFEEL/TASTE: Medium mouthfeel. Nice sweetness, almost bourbon-esque, with some fruit and malt and a hint of nuttiness at the back end.
FINAL REFLECTIONS: A nice, complete Scot-style ale that tastes like bourbon aged in walnut barrels. The sweetness is off-set nicely by the wheat and hops. Outstanding start.
BEER: The Barista (Breakfast Brown Ale)
ABV: 8.5%
MATT: 4/5
DANIELLE: 3.75/5
LOOK: Dark burnt amber
SCENT: Coffee and hops
MOUTHFEEL/TASTE: Medium mouthfeel. Coffee and cocoa. Alcohol and malt as well.
FINAL REFLECTIONS: Comes off like a stout even though it’s an ale. It would make a great winter ale — but I cannot imagine it would be drinkable at any other time during the year.
BEER: Space Cake (Double IPA)
ABV: 9%
MATT: 3.75/5
DANIELLE: 3.75/5
LOOK: Deep gold and clear
SCENT: Pine and hops
MOUTHFEEL/TASTE: Medium mouthfeel. There’s pine and there’s hops. And that’s the gist. It’s a basic IPA.
FINAL REFLECTIONS: Nothing overly complex here. Pine and hops and bitterness, which is what an IPA should be. There’s no “juice” to be had and no other outside flavoring. This is a really good IPA, but the lack of complexity brings it down a notch.
BEER: Galacticake (Double IPA)
ABV: 9%
MATT: 3.75/5
DANIELLE: 3.5/5
LOOK: Deep gold and clear
SCENT: Malt and grain alcohol
MOUTHFEEL/TASTE: Medium mouthfeel. This one is straight up malt, hops, and alcohol.
FINAL REFLECTIONS: Again, a different IPA, but still basic. No real gimmicks. That’s either a plus for you or it isn’t. For us, we’ve been spoiled by more complex and crafted IPA’s that it’s hard to say this one is “great”. Still drinkable, though.
FINAL THOUGHTS: A good 12-pack of beer from Clown Shoes Beer. There were some choice flavors in here while others were sort of derivative or boring. All in all, this has been a good tasting…on to Night #4!
HEAR OUR FINAL THOUGHTS:
TOMORROW: We have four winter-themed beers to try for the final night of “BEER-MAS” so stop on by!