By the Pint's Worst Ten Beers

My goal this summer was to try and find a Pale Ale that I genuinely liked. So I've been trying more than a few pales to see if I can find one that will change my opinion about pale ales. Tonight I decided to have Schlafly's Dry Hopped American Pale Ale. This has been sitting in my fridge for a little while, it isn't often that I drink a pale ale so when I acquire one it tends to sit around for a while. First impressions were pleasant. This APA is hoppy up front, but that's to be expected with a pale. It wasn't too hoppy... but hoppy enough to overshadow the malt and finish a little bitter. This beer tastes a lot stronger than it actually is. At just under 6% it isn't a terribly light beer but it tastes more like it'd be closer to 8%. This beer is called Dry Hopped because Schlafly adds extra hops to the beer after it's brewed to kick up the flavor... and it works. The beer does taste a little dry, not as much as a Sierra Nevada (which I think is too dry) but when that dryness combines with the bitter hops in your mouth it can be a bit much.

I really tried to like Boulevard's Saison-Brett. I did. This beer just doesn't do it for me though... Despite it's relation (no matter how specious) to George Brett and it's closeness in style to the Belgian beers I love so much, the Saison-Brett just isn't a beer I enjoy as much as I want to. My main complaint with this beer is that it is too spicy, it's borderline bitter which is something I don't like in my Saisons. I prefer the more sour, citrusy and creamy beers in this style. In my opinion, the Saison-Brett is too strongly hopped and too carbonated. The beer loses a bit of it's smoothness because the hops are so up front and the bubbles distract from those sour and citrus flavors that are hidden behind all that bitterness. As I said before, for a Saison, this beer isn't bad. It's still a little sour and a little sweet, not as much as I'd like but it's still there... If I were looking for a Saison to take to dinner, the Boulevard Saison-Brett wouldn't be my first choice.

To me, Anchor Steam Beer is the reason why I try not to judge a beer before I drink it. I put off drinking Anchor Steam for the longest time because I was convinced it was a hoppy California IPA. I don't remember why exactly, but I probably just confused Anchor with Sierra Nevada... Anyways, when I finally had my first Anchor Steam Beer it was something of an epiphany. There were not angels singing or trumpets or anything like that, but it was a real surprise. This beer wasn't super hoppy and it didn't taste like dandelions or pine cones. I've had a few more Steam Beers since then and every time I drink one I like it even more.

First, you should know I'm not a coffee drinker. I don't like the temperature or the flavor of coffee. I find it too bland or too bitter, so I just don't drink it. I do like Stouts and Porter style beer, even when they are a little more bitter than I'd like. The dark flavors in these beers are often compared to coffees so I guess it only makes sense to brew a beer with real coffee flavors. I've had a number of Coffee Stouts and Espresso Porters but I've never taken much of a liking to them. Usually I'll just take a sip, say it tastes like coffee and move on. I have yet to find a coffee flavored beer I genuinely like.