Hopper Pale Ale - Madison River Brewing Company

    Hopper Pale Ale is an American Pale Ale brewed by the Madison River Brewing Company which is located in Belgrade, Montana. I received this beer a while back in a shipment from my craft brew club.

    The Pale Ale pours a pale amber color, suggesting a maltier brew than other Pale Ales. There is very little head on the beer, making me think that this one is going to be extremely lightly carbonated. The tiny head does still leave a decent bit of lacing down the glass.

    Hopper's aroma is nicely hoppy with light, sweet malt undertones. The scent of citrus fruits is the predominate hops aroma, with a bit of a floweriness as well.

    The beer is medium bodied, though there is a very light level of carbonation. I'm disappointed in the lack of bubbles to the beer. I would like more effervescence to the brew so that the floweriness of the hops would be carried by the bubbles. The Pale Ale has an alcohol content of 6% ABV.

The rare, and terrifying, Beer-Hopper.

    Hopper Pale Ale's flavor is just to the hoppy side of balanced. Citrus and flowery hops add just a slight bit of bite to the sweet, caramel malts. There is a strong sweetness left in the mouth as an aftertaste.

    Regardless of what Madison River Brewing Company says the beer is named after, I'm convinced that it is named after the rare Beer-Hopper, of the family Beerus Hopidaeus. Little known throughout the world, the Beer-Hopper is a giant insect found only in the forests surrounding breweries powered by nuclear reactors. Feeding mainly on small rodents, the Beer-Hopper is carnivorous, and has been known to lure in unsuspecting humans (unsurprisingly, most were found to have been intoxicated after a day of brewery tours) by wrapping their legs up and under their hind-end, taking on the visage of a cool, refreshing glass of beer. Once the human prey has wrapped his or her hand around the glass, the Beer-Hopper uses its sharp, pointy teeth to deliver a lethal dose of ethanol before rubbing its legs together and creating a chirping sound to let other Hoppers in the area know that food is available (this sound has become known as the "Dinner Bell of Death" to Beer-Hopper aficionados).

    Overall, Hopper Pale Ale is much sweeter than I would like for a Pale Ale. The hops flavors are good, just not as prominently displayed as I would like. I would recommend this beer to people who would like to get into Pale Ales as a style, yet aren't very keen on strong hops flavors yet. If you're a fan of Pale Ales on the other hand, I would look elsewhere for a great one.

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Rolling Rock Extra Pale - Latrobe Brewing Co.

    Rolling Rock Extra Pale is an Adjunct Lager brewed by Latrobe Brewing Co. (now owned by Anheuser-Busch) which is located in St. Louis, Missouri. We needed a lager for a shrimp boil recipe and the wife picked this one up. We have a bit of a soft spot for these "tallboy" cans, so that likely factored into the choice.

    Rolling Rock Extra Pale lives up to its name in color as it pours a very pale straw color. The beer appears to be very effercescant and features a large, white head. The head has very low retention, however, and leaves nothing on the glass.

    This Adjunct Lager barely has any smell to it at all. What little scent there is comes off as light malts. Slightly sour corn notes can be detected, though very lightly. If I were to venture a guess, there was very little malt put into brewing this beer.

    Rolling Rock Extra Pale is light bodied and almost watery in mouthfeel. The medium-low carbonation level enhances the mouthfeel and makes the beer feel a bit fuller bodied. The beer has an alcohol content of 4.6% ABV.

A rolling rock gathers no moss, but it sure does ruin a beer.

    The Adjunct Lager's flavor is extremely light. What flavor there is in the beer is that of grains, mainly corn. There is next to nothing as far as hops flavor.

    The name Rolling Rock can't help but make me think of Raiders of the Lost Ark. My mind starts at the picture over there --> and then goes to the glass of beer being the idol on the pedestal. Indy looks at the beer, he smells the light adjunct grains and grimaces. He pours out some sand from his pouch, knowing that this beer is going to be a little lighter on flavor. The time comes to make the switch. Indiana Jones grasps the cup in one hand while readying his sandbag in the other. After a deep breath, Indy makes the switch. A little of the beer splashes out onto his jacket, and he gasps in shock. After a tense moment, nothing happens, everything seems to be ok. Just then, the sandbag begins to recede down into the pedestal. OH NO! He forgot that this was Rolling Rock Extra Pale! He should have taken more sand out of his bag first! Indiana has no time to ponder his mistake, as a giant (you guessed it) rolling rock comes out of nowhere and chases him out of the temple. He'll never put macro beer on a pedestal again!

    Rolling Rock Extra Pale is a beer that I would never choose over most any other beer given the chance. That said, it is actually quite light and refreshing. If someone were to give me this beer after a long day out in the heat, I would graciously accept it. Macro beers all tend to have the same problems (lack of flavor, wateryness, etc..) and this one is no different.

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Homefront - Xbox 360

    Homefront is a First Person Shooter developed by Kaos Studios and published by THQ. The game was released in 2011 on the Xbox 360, Playstaion 3, and PC. Homefront poses an interesting, (hopefully) fictional future in which the United States, weakened by its dependence on oil after the world's supply is nearly destroyed, falls to foreign powers. It falls to the player to join in the American Resistance, and fight back against the oppressive regime which has overtaken the American homeland.

Rare Vos - Brewery Ommegang

    Rare Vos is a Belgian style Amber Ale created by the Cooperstown, New York located Brewery Ommegang. When translated from Flemish (a dialect of Dutch spoken in northern Belgium), Rare Vos means Sly Fox. I have yet to see why exactly this name would be chosen for this style of ale, but i look forward to learning!

    Ommegang's ale pours a fitting red-amber color like the fur of a fox. A gigantic off-white head forms after pouring, though it quickly settles down leaving no trace on the glass.

    The Amber Ale has an interesting, metallic scent to it, like that of mineral water. There is also a very sweet scent of dark fruits and the banana-like Belgian yeast. Earthy spices entice the nose with their homey scents.

    Rare Vos is medium bodied with a medium-low carbonation level. I'm shocked at how smooth this beer is. Perhaps it is called a Sly Fox because it goes down so easily, yet leaves you surprisingly wobbly at 6.5% alcohol by volume.

    The beer tastes very sweet. There is no hint of metallic flavors, but instead, a surprising hint of orange peel. With the wonderful spices in the ale, Rare Vos reminds me of a fresh fruit pie for some reason. The Belgian yeast flavor is present, though it is much more subdued than in other Belgian style ales I have tried. Everything is very well balanced in the beer, making for an easy to drink ale.

I think you would be safer in my mouth!

    I mainly picked up this beer due to its label. I have had other Ommegang ales and have liked them well enough, but I'm a sucker for animals on labels. Add in the fact that the animals are partaking in one of my favorite hobbies, beer tasting, and I'm nearly 100% sure to buy your product based on the label alone. Thinking on the ale's name, however, reminds me of the old tale about the fox and the gingerbread man. We all know the story, the fox is an investment banker who offers to carry the Gingerbread man on his back across the river of homebuying with an amazing loan. The silly gingerbread man agrees, excited to be a new homeowner. Before too long the fox convinces the gingerbread man to invest in some overseas stocks and bonds, and trustingly, the cookie dude agrees. Next thing you know Mr. Gingerbread is so in need of dough that he sells his kids before they are baked to the fox. Long story short, the gingerbread man dies a painful death while the fox, feasting on the gingerbread man's hopes and dreams, retires to a condo in Hawaii.

    Ommegang's Rare Vos will not take advantage of you like the fox in the story, but it might sneak up on you and surprise you with its smoothness. This beer is definitely one of my favorite Belgian style ales that I have tried. There's just something so, safe, and homey about the spiced fruit flavors in the ale that makes me want to curl up and read a book. I'm really glad I tried this one!

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Exodus Porter - SweetWater Brewing Company

    Exodus Porter is a Porter created by SweetWater Brewing Company which is located in Atlanta, Georgia. This beer got its name due to the first batch being brewed on Bob Marley's birthday.

    The Porter pours a dark black color which lets very little light pass through the glass. A finger of khaki head can be seen after pouring with no lacing on the glass being apparent.

    The beer smells lightly of coffee and cocoa. There is a huge roasted malt scent and only the slightest bit of hops aroma.

    Exodus is medium bodied with a medium-high level of carbonation. I would prefer the beer to have a bit lower carbonation as it would feel smoother rather than bubbly on the palette. The high level of bubbles does, however, make the body seem thicker than it would otherwise feel. The beer has an alcohol content of 5.9% ABV.

Three little beers, pitch by my doorstep,
every little thing gonna be alright!

    Exodus is more lightly flavored than some Porters I have had. The first flavor is that of roasted coffee beans followed by chocolate. There is definitely the flavor of roasted malts in the beer, though it comes in secondarily to the other flavors. There is only the tiniest bit of hops bitterness to the Porter, almost nothing perceptible.

    Personally, I don't usually like Porters very much. The main thing that turns me off about them is their "blackness", or the amount that the beer tastes like coffee. I don't know why it bothers me, but I really don't like my beer to taste like coffee. Maybe it is the same reason that I have always hated the coffee flavored jelly beans. Exodus Porter actually comes off as pleasurable to me, even with its coffee flavor. The lightness of the flavors in the beer keep the coffee flavor from overwhelming me and I can still taste the roasty malts and chocolate flavors in it. Overall, not a bad showing from SweetWater Brewing Company.

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