Repositioning Round-up 2: San Francisco & Mexico

Let’s continue with my repositioning adventures.  After Oregon we ventured to San Francisco where my beer tasting continued.  I was fortunate enough to try the Anchor Steam beer, which holds the copy right for this name as it is the last beer produced by the original steam method.  I also got to try one of Speakeasy Ale & Lager’s offerings – the Big Daddy IPA.  Next we moved down away from America and into Mexico.  I’d asked my twitter friends for some recommendations for Mexican beers and was not disappointed by Modelo Negra which I think will be my go to Mexican beer from now on.  Let’s check out the tasting notes:

San Francisco Anchor Steam Beer

This beer had a beautiful amber colouring and a low head.  With a grainy, lightly citrus aroma this brew was quite satisfying with my burger.  I enjoyed the bitter beginning leading to a maltiness that filled the mouth.

Big Daddy IPA – Speakeasy Ale & Lager

Gold with a lingering white head this offering had a good balance of bitter grapefruit sweetness and nettle linger – my favourite combination in an IPA.

Modelo Negra - Modelo

This was recommended to me by Beerinalia on Twitter when I asked which beers I should try in Mexico and the Caribbean.  I’m really glad I took his advice!  Darm amber in colour with a quick;y dissipating fuzzy white head this beer had a rich malty sweet aroma with some underlying fruitiness.  I found the malty taste very refreshing with it’s sweet linger.

Victoria – Modelo

This was a recommendation by my server in Huatulco, Marco.  It is light amber with little to no head and a pine aroma.  Victoria has a good body with a grainy taste and only a little bitterness which was very refreshing in the heat.

Pacifico Clara – Modelo

Pale gold with no head to speak of this lager was not too bad despite the fact that I am not a fan of lagers in general.  It has a sharp lime aroma and a crisp grainy taste but I found it a little on the alkaline side for my tastes.

Bohemia Dark – Cervecería Cuauhtémoc Moctezuma

I have had the regular Bohemia before but had not found the dark version until my current season in Mexico.  I enjoyed it a lot more than the regular version, once again confirming my love of darker beers!  Nut brown with a low head this offering has a slightly astringent flavour with some roastiness.  The flavour begins mild but then becomes more roasted like a stout.  I found it more refreshing and watery than a regular stout though.

We are almost through the Panama Canal in my beer adventures so stick around to hear more soon!  

Canadian Beer Round-Up

While in Victoria this season, as with Alaska, I tried a lot of different beers.  Here we are going to focus on three Canadian breweries with brews that I particularly liked:

Phillips Brewery

Along with Service 1904 which I talked about last post I tried several beers from Phillips Brewery.  Blue Buck is what seems to be their stock beer – a pale ale with a bitter, biscuit flavour.  Analogue 78 is a Kölsch style beer with a creaminess to it that I also found in the Service 1904.  It was wheaty with a buttery aroma overlapping a freshness that was quite pleasant.  I think I have made it quite clear in previous posts that I enjoy a good raspberry wheat and the offering of this style from Phillips is very tart with a raspberry beginning.  I enjoyed the wheat aftertaste but wished this brew had more body.  I found the selection from Phillips Brewery to be quite satisfying and diverse.

Cannery Brewing Co

I have a friend who currently lives in Vancouver (which we will return to shortly) but studied in Victoria.  One day she picked us up from the ship and we went to her friend’s house for a bbq and some beers.  I picked up Cannery Brewing Co’s taster pack (in cans, no less) and really enjoyed it.  For a start I think a mixed six pack, three each of a style, is an awesome idea.  I know Boston Brewing Co also does mixed sixes, this idea needs to come over the pond for sure!  In my taster pack was their IPA, their Nut Brown Ale and the Anarchist Amber.  Of the three the Nut Brown was my favourite – brown with a tan head, a sweet, malty aroma that continues into the flavour with a good balance of nuttiness also.  The Amber came a close second being bitter to begin followed by a malt sweetness and a caramel finish.  The IPA wasn’t quite fruity enough for me, leaning more to the malty side of the IPA spectrum, but was still drinkable.  These guys are also pretty active on twitter so if you try their offerings, let them know, they like the feedback.

Steamworks Brewing Co

Back to Vancouver then, where we stopped just once and my friend came to visit again.  This time we had lunch at Steamworks Brewing Co which has a good selection on offer.  I tried the Frambozen (obviously) first, and this has become an instant favourite.  It is bright red in colour with a low pink tinged head and smells strongly of raspberry sweetness with a sour background.  The taste is pure raspberry with a bitter aftertaste that balances the sweet beautifully.  Secondly I tried their Ipanema White wheat ale which was also very tasty.  This is a very aromatic brew smelling of orange and spice, but unlike some of this style these are not overpowering in the taste which sometimes puts me off.  Slightly floral and spicy but balanced with a creaminess I enjoyed this brew almost as much as the Franbozen.

Before I sign off for this post I should also mention Lighthouse Brewing Co and Vancouver Island Brewing, who I also had some interesting offerings from.  If you are every in Canada, there is so much to choose from you will definitely find something that suits your taste buds!

Goldrush Brewery, Skagway AK

Outside of the main town of Skagway sits a little restaurant and brewery called Goldrush.  The walls are covered in the signatures of patrons and out back runs a river giving you one of the most gorgeous views I have had while tasting beer.  The food is pretty good too!

I visited Goldrush Brewery on what was probably one of the sunniest days I had my whole Alaska season.  After the trek out there and a little bit of sight seeing along the way I was ready for the 5 beer flight set before me.  Here are my tasting notes:

Smuggler’s Cove IPA

At 8% this is the strongest beer the brewery offers.  Gold in colour with a low head it smells of cider and is a touch solventy.  The taste is bitter to start with a sweet, light apple after taste.

Fireweed Honey 

This is the brewery’s most popular brew using local fireweed.  It is clear gold in colour with a low head.  This has a hoppy aroma with an alcohol background.  The hoppy bitterness continues in the flavour, as does the alcohol hit with a  slight sweetness.  I would have liked a little bit more of the honey to come through though.

Gold Dredge Red

Not the best red I’ve had but not a bad little offering.  Dark amber orange with a low head this has a warm malty sweet aroma which carries through in the taste.

Blue Collar

This wheat beer was refreshing.  It is cloudy and light gold in colour with a soft floral aroma with a touch of marmalade.  It is very carbonated with a light wheat flavour and a grainy linger.

Coffee Stout

This was my favourite from this brewery.  Dark brown, almost black in colour with a dense tan head it has a strong aroma of hazelnut and coffee.  When tasting it begins with a bitterness that is followed by a coffee taste leading into a roasty burnt flavour ending in a nutty sweetness.

If you are in Skagway, although it is a bit of a trek out of town the Goldrush Brewery is a good little stop to make with friendly staff and some fun activities nearby also.

Skagway Brewing Co, Skagway AK

This is my third season in Alaska; the last time I was here was 2008.  I remember back in my first season in 2007 the Skagway Brewing Co opening its doors.  Back then it had a menu of various different beers from around the world and as it is at the end of the main street in Skagway, not many people visited it.

Four years later the place is heaving and you have to get there early to get a good seat!  They have a selection of their own beers and a couple of guest brews.  I’m a fan of their Spruce Tip Blonde as I mentioned in a previous post and have indulged in a few this season.  Here are my tasting notes from their other styles:

Blue Top Porter

Real smokey taste with a hint of coffee and chocolate, very drinkale.

Boom Town Brown

My favourite after the Spruce Tip Blonde.  A good malty taste with a hint of toffee

Chilkoot Trail IPA

This has a very bitter beginning with a nice grapefruit after taste, not a bad IPA

Prospector Pale

This one was too bitter for me as I'm not a fan of Pales but still quite refreshing.

I’m currently up to 233 different beers tried… I think the new goal is to try to get to 250 by the time my ship reaches LA in 

Beer 200!!

On the 1^st August I tried my 200^th beer!  Since 2008 I have now tried 200 different beers and the list is going to continue to grow.

My 200^th beer was Hop In The Dark by Deschutes Brewery in Oregon. It was an interesting blend of a dark ale and an IPA that they named a Cascadian Dark Ale.  It incorporated all the best elements of the two types – the grapefruit aroma and bitterness of an IPA with the sweet maltiness of a dark ale. A good choice for my 200^th!

I’m thinking I should aim now for 225 beers before I leave Alaska, what do you think?  

The Heineken Experience - Amsterdam

While I was in Amsterdam back in April I visited the Heineken Experience.  This is more of a museum and activity center than a brewery tour as Heineken hasn’t been brewed in the old brewery since the 80s, but it is still worth a visit for those of us interested in beer.

Half of the Experience is about how the company was built through four generations of the Heineken family and how they developed the world renowned beer we know today.  The second half of the Experience explores the marketing side of the company, which has played a huge part in its success.

I was very interested to learn that currently the company is owned by a woman, Charlene de Carvalho-Heineken.  She gives you a little speech via video part way through.  When you get into the old brewery proper with the mash tuns and old equipment on display you get a chance to taste the wort made from the ingredients Heineken brews with.  I didn’t realize how sweet and like warm cereal it would taste!  I also had a go at stirring the wort while wearing traditional brewers garb.

One of the activities you can take part in is being brewed.  You are shown a video discussing the brewing process while standing on a platform that moves.  It shakes and mixes you while the temperature in the room also changes and you get sprayed with water!  I apparently now know how malts feel.

There is of course the obligatory beer tasting at the end of the Experience.  With your ticket you get a wrist band with three tokens on.  One token is good for a half pint.  You get a half pint in the tasting and then at the very end can get more in the World Bar. 

Overall I found the Heineken Experience interesting, it is definitely a different approach to a beer tour.  A lot of the information is about the company and its marketing process however so if all you really want to know about is the beer and the brewing process, that side is a little light.  I still think it is worth seeing though, but you definitely have to be a beer or business enthusiast to really enjoy it.

Tried Beer List

Here is my continually growing beer list. This post will be updated every time I try a new beer so keep an eye on it!

4-4-2 Shepherd Neame
Alaskan Amber Ale
Alaskan Summer Ale
Alexander Keith’s Dark
Alexander Keith’s Premium White
Alexander Keith’s Red
Badger Tanglefoot
Baltika lager
Bar Harbor Blueberry Ale
Bass Pale Ale
Becks
Belkin Lager
BH (Beer House) Premium
Blue Moon Belgian White
Boddingtons Pub Ale
Bohemia
Boulevard Lunar Ale
Brand Up

Brooklyn Lager
Bud Light
Bud Light Lime
Budweiser
Carib
Carling
Carlsberg
Caybrew
Chimay Premier Rouge
Coopers original pale ale
Coors Light
Cornhusker lager
Corona
Corona Light
Dos Equis Amber
Dos Exies
Dunkle (Krombacher)
Dunkles Extra
Florida Beer Florida Lager
Fosters
Franziskaner
Früh Kölsch
Fruli strawberry beer
Fumisterie (Hemp beer)
Garrison Raspberry Wheat
Greenwich Raspberry Wheat
Guinness
Heineken
Hobgoblin Ale
Hoegaarden Original white ale
Indiana Pale Ale
Innocence
Ironshore Bock
Island Summer Ale

John Smith's Extra Smooth
Kalik
Karhu III
Key West Sunset Ale
Kilkenny Irish Ale
Kona Longboard
Konig Ludwig Dunkle
Krombacher
Kronenbourg 1664
La Mondaine Brune
Landshark lager
Lapin Kulta III
Leafpeeper Lager
M&S Belgian Cherry Wheatbeer
Mariestads 3.5%
Marsalkka Vehnä
Märzen Spezial
Meantime London Porter
Medalla light
Medovar Honey
Michlob Light
Miller Light
Modelo Especial
Molson Canadian
Moosehead Lager
Moosehead Light
Newcastle Brown Ale
Newport Storm Hurricane Amber Ale
Newport Storm Oktoberfest
Norfolk Bitter
Old Speckled Hen
Pearl Light
Péché Mortel
Peroni
Pete’s Wicked Ale Strawberry Blonde
Pilsner Gold
Pilsner Urquell
Presidente
Propeller Pumpkin Ale
Pump House Blueberry Ale
Punk IPA
Red Rooster Ale
Red Stripe
Red Stripe Bold
Redbridge Gluten Free Beer
Rickard’s White Ale
Rostocker Pils
Rothaus Hefeweizen Zäpfle
Russell Cream Ale
Russell Honey Blonde
Russell Lager
Sagres
Saku Originaal
Salva Vida
Samuel Adams Backberry Witbeir
Samuel Adams Boston Brick Red
Samuel Adams Boston Lager
Samuel Adams Cherry Wheat
Samuel Adams Irish Red
Samuel Adams Latitude 48 IPA
Samuel Adams Noble Pilsner
Samuel Adams Oktoberfest
Samuel Adams Summer Ale
Samuel Adams White Ale
Samuel Adams Winter Lager
Sandringham Diamond Ale
San Miguel
Sandels
Sands
Sands Light
Sea Dog Blueberry Wheat
Sea Dog India Pale Ale
Shipyard Export Ale
Shock Top Belgian White
Sierra Nevada Pale Ale
Sleeman IPA
Southern Tier Raspberry Wheat
Spendrups Premium Lager 5%
Spitfire Kentish Ale
St-Ambroise The Great Pumpkin Ale (Citrouille)
St David's Light
Stella Artois
Super Bock
Tecate Light
Tiger Beer
Tropical Mango Pale Ale
Tuborg Classic
Tuborg Gron
Unibroue Blonde De Chambly
Vana Viini Lager 
Warsteiner Premium Verum
Wieckse Witte
Wychcraft White Ale
Yeugling traditional lager