Brew Reviews

City Pale Ale

Availability: I guess nationwide, since it's from Wisconsin, but I got it in a restaurant (which shall remain nameless for reasons that will soon become obvious) in Connecticut. Supposedly a springtime selection, but here it is January and I scored one.

Price comparison: The same price as all the other bottled beers at the restaurant, which is to say, about twice what one would pay buying a national brand in a store and drinking it at home.

Alcohol percentage by volume: 5½%.

Cute bottle/label? Twelve-ounce brown glass bottle with a very attractive metallic gold-and-green label.

Appearance: Light amber with an off-white head. Probably would have poured prettier had the glass been, well, glass. Points off for the plastic cup. (Don't even bother asking if it was chilled, as I will have to laugh at you till juice comes out of my nose. The cup was still warm from the dishwasher. I could weep.)

Scent: Malty citrus, with a little bit of that Milwaukee-ish hops, but only when I smelled the bottle, not the cup.

Flavor: Not as hoppy as most examples of what I consider a "pale ale," but certainly more flavorful than Budweiser and less offensive than Miller.

Impressions: Not particularly interesting, but serviceable and smooth for what it was, a decent value, and probably would have been better right out of the bottle. Went pretty well with the steak and baked potato I had for dinner.

Will I buy this beer again? I wouldn't drink it out of plastic again, and I don't think it's worth buying or drinking as a session beer, but it's got a flavor like what Budweiser would like to be when it grows up. Also, it's good to know I have options next time I want beer when I eat at this restaurant.

Rating:

3 out of 5 cute beer glasses

Never Summer Ale

Availability: Winter release only.

Price comparison: Dunno. It was part of my Beer of the Month Winter shipment, which was a gift. I've never seen this beer available locally, but I know that it must be, because the bottle has a CT refund listing of 5¢ on its label.

Alcohol percentage by volume: 5.94%.

Cute bottle/label? Standard brown glass twelve-ouncer with an attractive snowy-mountain-blue-sky-intensive label. The copy on the side of the label is delightfully pretentious, chock full of fun adjectives such as "aggressive" and "assertively hopped."

Appearance: A pretty reddish brown with an off-white head, leaving rings of lace on the glass.

Scent: I detected a touch of cranberry at first inhalation. Also brown sugar, raisin, and a touch of yeast and hops.

Flavor: Very citrusy and hoppy, with sweet malts and not a lot of spiciness.

Impressions: Went down altogether too smoothly. I don't mean to imply that this is a bad thing in the slightest. If you like beer at all, this is an ideal example of what to be looking for: not too strong to drink by itself, yet strong enough that you can get a buzz faster than by consuming equal amounts of domestic macrobrews; flavorful enough to hold your interest by itself, but not so overpowering that it would insult cheese or seafood; a winter beer that you could, conceivably, drink whilst sitting in an armchair by the fireplace, but not so spicy that you couldn't just sit at the bar and enjoy it for what it is.

Will I buy this beer again? Guess I'll have to. I've only got two bottles left and I think I'm going to have to trade at least one of them. It's only available in wintertime, so I'll have to act pretty fast. The worst thing about it was the copy, and, frankly, I got a kick out of that. It was just so ... silly.

Rating:

4 out of 5 cute beer glasses

Cookhouse Ale

Availability: Cookhouse restaurants only

Price comparison: $5 a pint on tap at the restaurant. ($2 drafts on Sundays after two and Monday nights during football season.)

Alcohol percentage by volume: Unknown (house brew, varying averages). Certainly no more than 5% and probably less because it was very fresh.

Cute bottle/label? Served on tap in a chilled stout glass. Not proper glassware, as such, if one is going to be all anal about such things, but stout glasses are durable, economical, and sensible in a barbecue restaurant on a football day. And it was chilled, which is a point of consideration.

Appearance: Clear deep golden with a creamy white head. Not much visible carbonation activity.

Scent: Flowery hops.

Flavor: Slight hint of grassy bell pepper and citrus, but overall, a startling resemblance to a sixty-minute IPA in flavor (though not in kick); extremely hoppy and very little malt throughout. Clean, crisp mouthfeel with light sparkly bubbles, and a nicely dry finish.

Impressions: Tasty and refreshing pale ale. Very light and easily drinkable. Would probably cellar well if someone wanted to take the time and effort to bottle and store it. If your tastes don't tend toward stronger, more alcoholic beers, this is an excellent session brew and also pairs very well with the barbecue and home-cooking that is the Cookhouse's signature style.

My main problem with this beer is its non-nationwide status. I could recommend it to everyone I know, but many of them wouldn't be able even to sample it without getting on a plane. I can't see the Cookhouse bottling it for distribution anytime soon, and I can't say I blame them.

Will I buy this beer again? The first time I ate at this restaurant, I had Magic Hat 9 just because I was so delighted to find it on tap. However, having discovered this house offering, I'll be ordering Cookhouse Ale from now on, unless I specifically want something stronger.

Rating:

3½ out of 5 cute beer glasses

Dogfish Head Chicory Stout

Availability: Nationwide in the US, year-round.

Price comparison: About the price of everyday beer.

Alcohol percentage by volume: 5.2%.

Cute bottle/label? Twelve ounce standard brown glass bottle. Labeled in earth-tones with a background image of coffee beans, presumably because roasted chicory roots are visually unattractive, and chicory leaves, while very pretty indeed, are actually radicchio, which has nothing to do with this beer and would therefore be very misleading indeed.

The above information has been provided by the Department of Useless Knowledge.

As always, the copywriters at Dogfish Head have provided a folksy description of the bottle's contents on the label, in this case, reading "A rich, dark brew smoothed out with a touch of roasted chicory and organic Mexican coffee. Goodness beneath a bone white head."

Appearance: The stout itself is a luxurious dark brown, with a dark, old-gold luster when held to the light.

As to the "bone white" head, apparently this is some strange definition of "bone white" with which I was not previously familiar, said definition being "dark tan".

I thought perhaps my eyeballs were dirty, so I called for a color confirmation from others in the vicinity, but by the time they reached me (about twenty seconds from my hail of, "Hey, come here for a minute"), the head was dissipated. So they didn't get to see the head, but we all agreed, from the threads of brown lace clinging to the glass, that my eyes were as clean as they are ever going to be, and bone-whiteness, by our standards, was simply not present.

Scent: Definitive espresso prominence, but also whiffs of strong black tea and an easy, toasted maltiness.

Flavor: The richness of the aroma loses in translation with the comparitively thin mouthfeel. The first flavor characteristic I was aware of was chemical carbonation, always a disappointment after such a promising scent, but it opened up a little once it warmed; black coffee and a bit of bitter chocolate, with maybe a hint of the promised chicory at the finish.

Impressions: The "bone white head" thing threw me for a loop, as I mentioned. Leaving that out of the equation, I felt the overall flavor profile was just not all that balanced. By far not the worst beer I've ever tasted, and certainly superior in my opinion than domestic macrobrews, but the mouthfeel would have had to be a little creamier for me not to feel a bit let-down by the whole experience.

Will I buy this beer again? I probably won't. The flavors are strong, but not pleasant enough to enjoy on their own, and other stouts - in fact, other Dogfish Head offerings - are as readily available and better executed.

Normally I'd say this is "worth a try, once", but I'd really prefer not to encourage the brewery to stick with this formula. If this is the only Dogfish Head beer carried by your local packaged goods store, ask them if they'd mind check their distributors' catalogs for other varieties.

Rating:

2 out of 5 cute beer glasses

Weyerbacher Blanche

Availability: On tap in New York State.

Price comparison: About the price of everyday beer.

Alcohol percentage by volume: 5%.

Cute bottle/label? 10-ounce sample from the kegs at the MOBY DICK.

Appearance: Cloudy, pale, not-quite-straw-colored. More of a manila folder-colored with maybe a little more yellow to it. The head was thick and bright-white, but neither lingered nor left any traces on the glass.

Scent: Lemon peel, brown rice, and a touch of yeastiness.

Flavor: A bit of spiciness and hops to the start, with coriander seed and a bit of acidity at the back and a dry, clovelike finish.

Impressions: It was interesting; not the best witbier I've ever tasted and the slight acidity in the flavor needed a partner. I think I wouldn't mind drinking this with a salad or bitter greens, but I didn't think of it as a session beer or a beer whose flavor would stand on its own.

Will I buy this beer again? It was okay, but I won't be going back to fill my ½-gallon growlers with it. Weyerbacher has other varieties that I prefer and other brewers have other witbiers that I prefer, but this was worth the experience and if it was offered to me again (say, at a picnic) I'd certainly feel safe drinking it and knowing it's not that bad.

Rating:

3 out of 5 cute beer glasses

Morimoto Hazelnut Signature Ale

Availability: Not listed as such, but I believe this is a limited edition available only in select markets.

Price comparison: About $2 more (per twelve ounces) than the average domestic national brand.

Alcohol percentage by volume: Unlisted; at a guess, less than 6%

Cute bottle/label? Twenty-two ounce brown glass bottle with an image of Iron Chef Morimotosan in traditional Asian garb silkscreened directly to the bottle.

Appearance: Chocolatey brown with small head and some lace.

Scent: Definitely hazelnut, with undertones of cocoa and smooth coffee.

Flavor: Slight nuttiness without being overpowering, peppery hops at the finish. More malt in the flavor as it warmed.

Impressions: Allez taverne!

Sorry, I couldn't resist. Can you blame me?

This was a nice little treat. Very drinkable; I finished the whole bottle in no time, with no ill effects. Ironically, I think this is too brusque to match with the more delicate styles of Japanese cuisine, but it would complement hibachi fairly well, and would also pair well with red meat or game. If you're a vegetarian, don't have this with dinner, wait and have it with dessert instead; I found it went surprisingly well with chocolate ice cream.

Will I buy this beer again? I'm learning my lesson. I liked this enough that I want some more; therefore, I must buy it now in case it is indeed a limited edition. I don't know how well it will mature, but I do know that Rogue brewery uses special capping processes to absorb oxygen and the malt-to-hops balance was such that I don't see it corking off or getting skunky; it should be quite stable to hang onto, at least for a little while.

Rating:

4 out of 5 cute beer glasses

Boont Amber Ale

Recommended by: Spencer the Scruffy Beer Kid

Price comparison: About the same as everyday beer.

Alcohol percentage by volume: 5.8%

Cute bottle/label? Standard twelve-ounce brown glass; the label depicts a clear mountain stream tableau with an antlered bear that reminds me of a jackalope.

Appearance: Deep rust-red with a tan head and sheets of lace left on the glass.

Scent: Strong floral and grapefruitlike hops, with an almost piney aroma involved as well.

Flavor: A hodgepodge of citrus, flowers, hops, rosemary, a bit of malt and rum caramel, with a bit of yeast in the finish.

Impressions: Very drinkable indeed. More than one is in order, but more than one is not a problem. You could have this by itself, in moderation, or drink lots of it with heavy thirst-inducing foods.

Will I buy this beer again? I'm there. Bring it.

Rating:

4 out of 5 cute beer glasses

Stoney Creek Vanilla Porter

Price comparison: About the same as national-branded beer.

Alcohol percentage by volume: 5½%

Cute bottle/label? Standard twelve-ounce brown glass; standard Stoney Creek fish (I think it's a trout, but what do I know about fish?) logo centered on the label in beige-on-beige tones.

Appearance: Dark brown, nearly purple, with a thick tan head and vivacious carbonation. Streaks of thin lace left on the glass.

Scent: Cocoa, vanilla, coffee, malt.

Flavor: Roasted chicory and toasted white bread with vanilla bean (not artificial vanilla flavoring) on exhalation. More vanilla on the tongue as it warmed.

Impressions: I hope I can have this on tap someday, or perhaps find it in a nitro can, because although it tastes very nice, the carbonation of the bottled product is a bit harsh in mouthfeel.

Will I buy this beer again? It's satisfying; not too sweet; a very good session porter and good value for the money. One of those things you need to be in the mood for, as opposed to being a regular player, but I would serve this as a dessert beer without hesitation.

Rating:

3½ out of 5 cute beer glasses

Limburg Witbier

Recommended by: Matt

Sent by: Darsha

Price comparison: I don't know; it was a gift.

Availability: Not only is this beer only available in the US to a very limited market, and only in its specially-pasteurized-for-export form, and not in Connecticut at all, but apparently it's hard to find the real stuff in New Zealand as well. The above-mentioned Beer Fairy had to go on a beerhunt for it.

Alcohol percentage by volume: 5.2%

Cute bottle/label? 330 ml brown glass bottle with a subtle brasstoned, navy blue, and white pentagonal label.

Appearance: Sort of a creamy opaque orange with a white head and quite a bit of sediment.

Scent: Tangerines, malt, and crushed coriander seeds.

Flavor: The coriander seems to be the big star in this beer; also some wheatiness and malt. Finished very lightly with some sweetness.

Impressions: This is more of what I expect of a beer than the other New Zealand beers that I've tried. It definitely has the most flavor of all the ones I've had so far and was very drinkable indeed.

Will I buy this beer again? I can't. It was so hard to get; not just for me, but for the Beer Fairy. Plus, she actually sent two beers in this shipment, but this was the only one that arrived intact. Damned Customs people who don't know the definition of "Fragile."

Rating:

3 out of 5 cute beer glasses

Dixie Blackened Voodoo Lager

Recommended by: trinity63

Availability: Couldn't get it in Connecticut, but found it in New York.

Price comparison: About $3 more per six-pack than national-branded beer.

Alcohol percentage by volume: 5%

Cute bottle/label? Standard twelve-ounce brown glass; label depicts a murky mysterious moonlit bayou. Spooky-cool.

Appearance: Dark brownish-black that glowed garnet when held to the light. Tan head that left thick smears of lace on the glass.

Scent: Black grapes; malt; coffee.

Flavor: Smooth, sweet malt with not much hops, also a light smokiness around the edges.

Impressions: This beer is eminently drinkable. Slighly overcarbonated and almost deliberately sweet and salty at once, a perfect balance for Cajun or (as I had it tonight) Tex-Mex food.

Will I buy this beer again? Not as elusive as the Sam Adams Triple Bock was, but still pretty hard to get to, and kind of pricy. However, I like it an awful lot. I figure I'll buy it whenever I'm in New York anyway, just out of convenience, but I'm really not in New York a lot.

Rating:

3½ out of 5 cute beer glasses

Abbot Ale

Price comparison: Priced about the same as the average national domestics.

Alcohol percentage by volume: 5%

Cute bottle/label? Standard 12 ounce brown glass with green metallic label depicting some old clergy guy in a funny hat. Also available in nitro cans.

Appearance: Clear golden brown with a lightweight head and decent glass lace.

Scent: Sweet; butterscotch and malt.

Flavor: Nice hops with a yeasty back and a clean spring-waterlike finish.

Impressions: This is a nice smooth ale; delicately flavored and balanced for session drinking. Not for getting drunk quickly or for maintaining a buzz, but so much more appetizing than the standard domestics and comparably priced.

Will I buy this beer again? Absolutely. A perfect offering for guests: refreshing, good just for drinking but would also go well with snacks or a meal. And I won't feel guilty drinking this on a weeknight either.

Rating:

4 out of 5 cute beer glasses

San Miguel Dark

Recommended by: ska-t

Price comparison: 1½ times the price of everyday beer.

Alcohol percentage by volume: 5%

Cute bottle/label? Squat brown twelve-ounce glass bottle with metallic gold label.

Appearance: The color of black coffee, with a light head and sodalike carbonation.

Scent: Brown sugar, cherries, cinnamon toast, malt.

Flavor: Very mild considering its color and aromas; nothing really distinctive, just light and cool.

Impressions: I started drinking this beer, on and off, years ago. The bad news is that it doesn't taste as good as it smells; the good news is that it does have an easy, not-too-sweet finish that renders it pretty refreshing.

Will I buy this beer again? It's a little pricier, but I do still buy this beer from time to time. I usually buy it in wintertime, oddly enough, because it keeps me from being too depressed when the weather gets particularly wretched.

Rating:

3 out of 5 cute beer glasses

Old Speckled Hen

New feature:

If you recommend a beer to me, and I am able to acquire some for reviewing, and you have a website for which you'd like some extra traffic, I will give you thanks and a link back to your site.

Drawbacks to this feature:

• I can't always acquire the beers people recommend. Some of them simply aren't available or shippable to this part of the country.
• If I hate the beer you've recommended, are you really going to want a link back?

So I don't know how well this will work out in the long run, but, fortunately, in this case, it worked out well.

Recommended by: ska-t

Availability: The IHOD had it in bottles, all right, but I had to drive to Vernon to get it in cans.

Price comparison: Around the same price as everyday beer.

Alcohol percentage by volume: 5.2%

Cute bottle/label? The IHOD had clear glass bottles with octagonal white labels, either a single 25 ouncer or a four-pack of standards. The cans, which are a light beige, are not available at the IHOD.

You may wonder why I'm harping on the difference here. Read on.

Appearance: Out of the bottle: dark reddish. The head fizzled out almost immediately. Out of the can: glowing clear copper, with the cascading nitro head of a good stout, settling to clear and bubbly with a nice creamy topping.

Scent: From the nitro can, somewhat sweet, yet a touch of alcohol at the same time, like cough drops.

And here is the main reason I have been harping on the differences ...

From the clear glass bottle: SKUNK.

Flavor: From the nitro can: cream and vanilla with a background of banana and brown sugar and a crisp, lightly bitter finish. The mouthfeel of a stout with the flavor of a fine pale ale.

From the bottle: SOUR. Not pleasant.

Impressions: I had a helluva time with this one, as it had been recommended by someone whose opinion I respect, and my first encounter with it, in the bottle, was so unpleasant I was terrified to give it another go. However, I really felt that I couldn't review it in good conscience unless I gave it the benefit of the doubt, and I'm glad I did. The nitro cans, while not as conveniently available as the bottles to me, make Old Speckled Hen eminently drinkable, whereas the clear glass bottles, a bad idea in any case, caused my first experience to be a scary one. I'm grateful I was able to get past it without trauma.

Will I buy this beer again? Only in the nitro can. I not only do not recommend the bottled, I heartily advise against it. The can, on the other hand, rocks my world.

Rating:

3½ out of 5 cute beer glasses for the canned version only

Luxury Double Chocolate Stout

Price comparison: Twice what I pay for everyday beer.

Alcohol percentage by volume: 5.2%

Cute bottle/label? Dark brown glass 25 ounce (with a ram - insignia of the Ram Brewery - on the shoulder) ; royal purple label with gilt accents. Also available in the "nitro can" (a large-sized can with a plastic float inside designed to blend the nitrogen and CO₂ for the ultimate stout draught experience).

Appearance: Deep, darkest brown, like black coffee, with downward-flowing nitrogen bubbles and lavish, creamy foam.

Scent: Chocolate malt. A very basic, but appealing, aroma.

Flavor: Malty, mocha, thick yet silky; hops balancing out the sweetness; lightly bitter finish like semi-sweet dark chocolate.

Impressions: My very first impression of this beer was an almost fully-formed commercial playing itself out in my brain:

"You've got Hershey's Syrup in my Guinness!"
"Well, you've got Guinness in my Hershey's Syrup!"

If you know both of those flavors, you'll have the gist of the Double Chocolate Stout.

It's certainly luxurious. A very filling and comforting beer; not a thirst-quencher. Don't serve it with dessert, serve it instead of dessert. Also, don't serve it as cold as you would Guinness - I got the best results refrigerating for three hours but leaving the bottle out at room temperature for twenty minutes before opening. A nice alternative to cocoa on a winter night. If you like stout, this is a winner.

Will I buy this beer again? I like this quite a lot. It'll never replace Guinness in my heart, but it might come in as a relief player once in a while.

Rating:

4 out of 5 cute beer glasses

Magic Hat #9

Price comparison: Priced about the same as the average national domestics.

Alcohol percentage by volume: 5.1%

Cute bottle/label? Standard six-pack or single 1.375 pint brown glass bottle; label art is very funky/retro/cosmic-by-design. If you order this stuff in a bar, make sure the bartender or server gives you the cap, inside of which you will find such words of wisdom as (on this particular cap) "Don't tease - aim to please."

Appearance: The clever hippie retro label proclaims #9 to be a "not-quite-pale ale", which is pretty accurate labeling, since this really qualifies as a fruit brew (apricot). I'm not sure whether the color owes to natural coloring or if it's enhanced in some way, but it definitely pours a golden apricot color, giving you a hint of what to expect. Light natural carbonation; thin head but decent lacing.

Scent: Although the first inhalation is unmistakably apricot, with hints of honeysuckle or some other sweet blossom, #9 is not pretending at wine-cooler status and overall the perfumes balance well with a pronounced maltiness overall.

Flavor: Again, the apricot flavor is prevalent and yet manages to be neither overpowering nor sweet. Hints of raisin and citrus in the background, with a dry finish not unlike chablis.

Impressions: Magic Hat #9 is not a new beer to me. I had it first at an old-fashioned pub that had dozens of beers on tap and over a hundred bottled, from imports to local microbrews. The servers were very knowledgeable about their products and remembered their customers' tastes from visit to visit, so that I was able, after a few visits, to say to a server I'd had before, "Surprise me," and she would bring a new beer for me to try, and almost always, she'd be right. Magic Hat #9 was one of those pleasant surprises.

Unfortunately, it raised my expectations a bit. I've gotten to a point where I expect all fruit beers to be like the #9: unmistakably beer, but a beer where the end judgment is inevitably that, without the fruit, it would be something else entirely. In other words, Magic Hat #9 is what I had wanted Éphémère to be: refreshing, light, definitely beer and definitely bringing an essence of fruit to the party at the same time - likewise, the girliness factor of the fruit and perfume is balanced by the cool graphics and quip under the cap.

Will I buy this beer again? I buy this beer all the time. No reason to stop now. It's versatile and thirst-quenching. Pairs well with seafood or with salty snacks. Its low alcohol content makes it a wise choice if you have to work in the morning, but if you're drinking to get drunk, you need quite a lot of this stuff to get a buzz, so pick a table or barstool with a clear path to the restrooms.

Rating:

3½ out of 5 cute beer glasses

Casta Bruna

Price comparison: About a buck more than I pay for everyday beer. Not bad.

Alcohol percentage by volume: 5.35%

Cute bottle/label? Four-pack of 12-ounce brown glass bottles. Label is a painting of a collage of bottles, done in the Oaxacan style. I can honestly say I bought the beer at least in part because I was attracted to the label art.

Appearance: Dark reddish brown; clear and bubbly. The head didn't retain at all, but did leave a bit of fizz floating on top.

Scent: Cranberries and malt.

Flavor: Malty, with just enough bitterness to make it interesting. There's a bit of a sweetness-with-acidity, like honey-lemon tea, in the background.

Impressions: I was looking for a new beer to have with Mexican food because I seem to have lost my taste for Corona. This pale ale comes off like a cross between one of the Belgian pale ales and an English bitter, closer to the English, but still, very pleasant and refreshing. I don't think I'd mind this by itself, but it comes off as pretty versatile, in that it would pair just as well with nachos and guacamole as it would with empanadas or carne asada. I also see no reason not to have this with a slice of pizza.

Will I buy this beer again? We eat a lot of Mexican food around here.

Rating:

3½ out of 5 cute beer glasses

Éphémère

Price comparison: About twice what I pay for everyday beer.

Alcohol percentage by volume: 5.5%.

Cute bottle/label? Four twelve-ounce bottles. The most beautiful Unibroue label I've seen so far, with an illustration of a fairy in a flowery meadow, overlaid by a green apple. Seems almost a deliberate campaign for conversion into an expensive tattoo.

Appearance: Somewhere between golden and amber, but closer to golden. Fairly cloudy, head died fast and left virtually no lacing.

Scent: If the label wasn't enough of a clue, you certainly get the hint once you crack the bottle open. Apples. Damn. I couldn't smell anything but apples at first, although, after I gave it my best effort and a few more sniffs, I could finally detect some of the promised curaçao lurking in the wings.

(Helpful hint to readers who are unfamiliar with curaçao: it's a liqueur that tastes like orange zest. Incidentally, even though it looks like it ought to be "cure - a - cow", it's actually pronounced "koor - a - SOW".)

Flavor: One of my favorite lines from Dead Again, which is one of my favorite movies, is this one, delivered by Robin Williams' character: "Either you're a smoker or a nonsmoker. The trick is to decide which one you are, and be that." I identify very strongly with that line, because I haven't had a cigarette in over a year, yet I still feel like a smoker.

But I digress. There was a point to my having brought up that line. Pick which one you are, and be that. Éphémère smells like a wine cooler and tastes like beer. I was very tempted to say, "Go away and don't come back till you've made up your mind." Very dry and malty. Gulping it lets you almost taste apple peels; sipping it, not so much.

Impressions: This beer had a lot less character than I was anticipating, especially since its Unibroue cousins have all made me pretty happy. Éphémère is the French for "transitory", and so this is. The label proudly proclaims it to be composed of apple, coriander, and curaçao, but none of the flavors really makes itself known, although the scent of apple is wildly overpowering. I gave another bottle a go, just to be fair (heh) and, with a dash of cinnamon, another of allspice, and a quick grating of fresh nutmeg, it was more palatable, but I shouldn't have to do the work myself, especially at that price.

By the end of the second bottle, I felt slightly more charitable (or, at least, a little more buzzed). The weather may be too cold for me to properly enjoy this obviously summer-oriented beer, but I'm thinking: Italian combo sub, plus one of these, plus warm day, could well equal a decent picnic. As for the balance of this particular four-pack, I'll use one bottle to par-steam ribs before grilling and the other to deglaze the pan next time I make chicken-apple sausage with onions.

Will I buy this beer again? I wouldn't necessarily turn Éphémère down if someone else bought me one, but I take a little exception to the higher cost. I mean, for a bottle of perfume with a pretty label, the price was reasonable, but for a beer I didn't like well enough to do anything other than cook with, it was kind of expensive.

Rating:

2½ out of 5 cute beer glasses

Postscript:
I made pork chops with Éphémère sauce tonight and they came out quite good. Here's my recipe.