I’ve been asked to sample a few barleywines this week for a piece I’m working on, and I can’t even begin to tell you how much that doesn’t suck. Tonight I’m drinking the Old Foghorn by Anchor Brewing, in San Francisco, a classic barleywine for certain. Knowing I’d be enjoying the beer tonight, I stopped in and asked my local cheese monger if he had anything new for me to sample. I told him what I was drinking, described the general profile of the Old Foghorn, and he walked me over to a good looking wheel of cheese, Vella Dry Jack.
I am not, nor would I pretend to be, a cheese expert, but I will tell
you this beer and cheese just works! The Vella website has this to say about this cheese:
Made like fresh Monterey Jack and further aged for another 7 to 10 months. Firm, pale yellow with a sweet nutty flavor. This cheese is great for grating, shredding, slicing, cooking or just plain eating. Marvelous in toasted cheese sandwiches, omelets and souffles. Delicious shredded on pasta, soups or tacos –for a taste that is unique and special. Can also be added to casseroles and enchiladas. Dry Monterey Jack will become one of your favorites!
It did become one of my favorites, and a much larger quantity will be procured for the PBN 2008 Barleywine Festival I’ve started piecing together.
Before tonight, I’d never heard of Vella Cheese, so you can imagine my surprise to learn they’re regional! Yes, these guys made their cheese in Sonoma – which makes a great detour when you’re out sampling the better reds of the region. For more info on them, check out their site.
How was the Old Foghorn? As good as you’d think it was.
In this second installment of Summer Seasonal reviews for 2007 I have my first (to my knowledge) sample of Anchor’s Summer Beer. According to the Anchor website, this seasonal beer was first brewed in 1984, but has only been bottled for the past five years (since 2002). It is available April through November in six packs and 22oz bottles, with this particular sample picked up at Beverages and More in Citrus Heights.
Apparently this is an American Wheat beer, and judging by the first year brewed, it must be one of the first to be made – no surprise knowing that Anchor has paved the way for several styles we love today.
When poured into a pint glass, this beer displays a dry, somewhat earthy and dried flower aroma. Very clean aroma too, slightly crisp and certainly inviting for hot summer nights. Its color is light golden with great clarity and a frothy white head that retains itself well for about 30 seconds after pouring.
The taste hits you in three distinct waves. Up front, the beer is biscuity sweet, with light caramelization. Next, the mild peppery and floral hop flavor and bitterness – for some reason I am thinking of dried flowers when tasted. Finally, this beer shows off a crisp, moderately dry finish and a wonderful tart character that is from the 50% wheat used in the recipe.
Anchor Summer Beer has a medium body with a chewy texture to it. Their site suggest a consistency of ‘whipped eggs’, but I am not getting that necessarily. The beer is also highly carbonated, lending to a more refreshing bite your cheeks will appreciate. Their is a low alcohol presence, which you’d expect in a beer boasting 4.6% ABV.
Overall, I gotta give some love for the quality of this beer, it is a great representation of the style. If you like Hefeweizens, beware. This is an American wheat through and through and you could be quite disappointed with every aspect of this beer if you’re expecting the clove/banana character that defines Hefes. Additionally, the body and appearance would throw you off if you go into this expecting a cloudy beer. I personally find this to be very close to an American Pale Ale – but with a clear tart character.
The Score: 3.9/5
About my scores…
I am scoring these beers based on their style, not a personal preference. I am not a fan of the American Wheat Beer, it should be noted. However, many people are, and this beer is clearly made to style and is pretty much without flaw. So, it gets a high score – and 3.9 is a very high score.
My Scale (adapted from bjcp standards)
4.5 – 5 = Outstanding
3.8 – 4.4 = Excellent
3 – 3.7 = Very Good
2.1 – 2.9 = Good
1.4 – 2 = Drinkable
< 1.3 = Problems
It has been way too long… way too long. I don’t see this beer very often so when I was in Wine Country over the weekend and saw this in a local grocer I didn’t hesitate in picking one up. Now I wish I’d bought more.
About ‘Small Beer’
If you’re not sure what Small Beer is, it isn’t just a label name for Anchor’s product, but an actual style of beer that goes back centuries. Essentially the beer is made from the second runnings of a brewers big barley wine. With most of the grains’ sugar extracted in the first running there isn’t a lot of sugar to make the second batch from the grist. This means the beer has a fairly low orginal gravity, resulting in an equally low alcoholic content. The beers are generally thinner in the body but with a great flavor for the smaller alcohol content. A wonderfully refreshing beer.
What About Anchor’s Small Beer?
The beer pours a gold color and, because I had it chilled too low in my fridge, has a bit of a chill haze to it. Sure, I could let it warm a bit, but I just finished a workout and am finding this to be too much to let sit. The color has a bit of an orange hue to it as well. White bubbly head with moderate retention.
Aroma
Mild overall, which is no surprise. I’m going use a word that sounds obvious, but oddly appropriate – grainy. Very low hop character, but decidedly spicy. No alcohol noted.
Taste
The beer is just good, does that sound credible? No? OK, then I guess I’ll expand a bit by using that grainy word again. If you’ve never tasted malted barley it may not make sense to you, but I find this to be pretty much a combination of 2-row and some lightly toasted caramel malt. This beer is not sweet, not bitter. The sweetness that is found is quite mild and shortlived, being overcome with a mild citrusy & spicy bitterness. It finishes a bit dry, with a lingering mild bitterness. A very refreshing beer.
Mouthfeel
A light bodid beer with moderate carbonation and no noted alcohol warming in the throat. Mild astringency, which I expect with the process this has gone through, and very easy to drink.
Overall
This isn’t a sipping beer like the Old Foghorn is. Instead it is a near perfect summer beer when you’re looking for liquid refreshment. If you think a great beer has to be big or imperial, Anchor will do what they can to let you know sometimes Small is great.
Score: 4.1/5
