Tom's Solo Beer Review - Gonzo by Flying Dog

General:

Style: Baltic Porter 

Glass: Brown bottle

Price: $2.79 per 12 oz. bottle

ABV:9.2%

IBU: 85

Color: Dark chocolate color with brown head foam. 

Aroma:

Malty✓ Balanced__ Hoppy__ Other__

Strong, rich, almost chocolate smell. You can taste the heaviness of the alcohol almost instantly.

Flavor:

Malty_✓_ Balanced__ Hoppy__ Other__

An amazing taste. Honestly one of my favorites I have had ever. Almost a dark chocolate taste with a huge kick. Being over 9% ABV, I could only enjoy one before I was into a full body experience of this beer.

Overall Thoughts:

I love it, and will be drinking it again. I choose it just for the bottle's look but in the one case, it was good to judge this "book" by it's cover.

Craftmanship:

Dull__ Average & 'Meh'__ Average & Delicious__ Exciting_✓

It's amazing to say the least. You just have to taste it for yourself. Go grab yourself a Gonzo from Flying Dog at Whole Food on US1, they had tons of them there when I went to buy it.

Overall Rating:

9/10

Rafa's Solo Beer Review - Lagunitas IPA

General:

Style: India Pale Ale

Glass: Beer Tulip

Price: $1.99 per 12 oz. bottle

ABV: 6.2

IBU: 45

Color: Pale with heavy orange and maroon notes

Aroma:

Malty__ Balanced__ Hoppy_✓ Other__

A very well balanced IPA, but being an IPA, it's on the hoppy side. The hop aroma is very nice - citrusy and balanced. The malt aroma is sweet and caramel-like. Overall balanced for an IPA.

Flavor:

Malty__ Balanced__ Hoppy_✓ Other__

An awesome flavor! This is definitely an A+ beer. One of my new top 5 favorites. It's got an amazing hop bite at the finish, but starts out with a nice creamy maltiness that balances it out. It definitely leaves you wanting more.

Overall Thoughts:

Amazing. A great beer. I never thought to pick up any Lagunitas, but I'll definitely be on the lookout from now on.

Craftmanship:

Dull__ Average & 'Meh'__ Average & Delicious__ Exciting_✓

IPAs are hard to balance out. So whenever I find an IPA that is this well balanced, I've got to give it this rating. It's very exciting to find such a great - dare I say - balanced East Coast style IPA coming from California.

Overall Rating:

9/10

Titanic Brewery and Restaurant

Report Card:
Beer Selection: 3
Beer Centricity: 5
Service: 3
Beer IQ: 4
Atmosphere: 4
Price: $$


Rafa's Thoughts:

Tom enjoying an Oatmeal Stout

Titanic is the only commercial brewpub or brewery in our area, so it has a special place in our hearts. They make their beers on site and display the equipment proudly in their main eating area and behind their bar. Walking in, one gets the vibe that Titanic is definitely a traditional style pub, often advertising their beers as British in nature. The atmosphere is steaming with beer-centric culture and paraphernalia, but is somewhat hybridized with an almost clashing college culture. Titanic is right smack in the middle of the University of Miami area, so its population is mostly college kids. This isn't a bad thing, per se, but could potentially clash with the rustic atmosphere of the pub. We gave service a 3 simply because two of our beers came to us nearly flat, and on other occasions, we've had beers come to us warm and without a decent head. Besides this, the beers are very good. We've been lucky enough to try most of their beers: Best Bitter, Oatmeal Stout, Nut Brown Ale, IPA, and my favorite, their Rye Ale. Their house brews span a vast array of styles, but they could benefit from offering a wider selection of other commercial brews in order to further widen the availability of different beers. I got a caesar salad - and I know it's just a salad - but it was the best caesar salad I've ever had. Overall, Titanic is a great joint, and should be checked out by beer geeks everywhere. Great prices, great food, and great beer - Titanic is definitely an A+ joint. Cheers!




Rafa's Beer Review:
We normally won't conduct beer reviews of beers we had out at a bar, but because Titanic brews their own beer, we did for their beers. That said, I had the White Star IPA:

Rafa's IPA

1. General:
Style: "An American version of a classic English ale. Brewed with pale ale malt and Northwest Simcoe hops. Smooth flavor dominated by a huge hop bouquet."
Glass: Pint
Price: $4.50 per 12 oz. glass
ABV: 7%
IBU: Unknown
Color: Pale
2. Aroma: Malty__ Balanced_✓ Hoppy__ Other__
Kind of a bland aroma, but overall balanced. I was expecting a stronger hop presence.
3. Flavor: Malty__ Balanced__ Hoppy_✓ Other__
Yum! A great IPA flavor. Very much like a Stone IPA in that the smoothness of the Simcoe hops made it out to be a better balanced citrusy IPA. Awesomely balanced with the malt.
4. Overall Thoughts:
This is really a great beer. I wish the ABV (7%) was a bit lower, maybe at a 5 or 5.5 just because it limits the amount of beers you can have if you're planning on staying sober. I'd love it to exemplify a more pungent hop aroma, but the flavor makes up for it. A great beer.
5. Craftmanship: Dull__ Average & 'Meh'__ Average & Delicious_✓ Exciting__
Nothing exciting about this beer, but it is definitely a great beer. Well crafted - a great staple for Titanic.
6. Overall Rating: 6/10


Mike's Beer Review:
We generally won't conduct beer reviews of beers we had out at a bar, but because Titanic brews their own beer, we will bend the rules. That said, I had the seasonally brewed Dry Hopped IPA:

1. General:
Style: Similar to their White Star India Pale Ale however they take the extra step by dry hopping it prior to bottling.

Mike and the Titanic logo

Glass: Pint
Price: $5.00 per 12 oz. glass
ABV: 7%
IBU: Unknown
Color: Pale
2. Aroma: Malty__ Balanced    Hoppy_✓_ Other__
The hops are definitely present in the aroma of the beer and the aroma is a very good hint as to what is in the glass.
3. Flavor: Malty__ Balanced__ Hoppy_✓ Other__
This was an extremely hoppy beer! To the point where I found it to be overwhelming, unfortunately.
4. Overall Thoughts:
This is a beer that I would consider to be a good sample beer. Something of which I personally would not want to drink more than 5 ounces. If you have never tried a dry hopped IPA, I would suggest asking for a sample prior.
5. Craftmanship: Dull__ Average & 'Meh'_✓_ Average & Delicious    Exciting__
Nothing exciting about this beer, but it is definitely a great beer. Well crafted - a great staple for Titanic.
6. Overall Rating: 4/10


Tom's review:
The first beer I had was "British Best Bitter" it was the second time I had it and it was my personal favorite but this time, the beer came out flat, which was a disappointment. I then asked for the Oatmeal Stout, which is a dark, heavy beer (similar to Guinness) which I truly enjoyed.  *note: I will only review the Oatmeal Stout*
1. General: A very dark, rich beer. Very similar to Guinness but with a strong Oatmeal taste.
2. Aroma: Malty__ Balanced_✓ Hoppy__ Other__
Kind of a bland aroma, but overall balanced. I was expecting a stronger hop presence.
3. Flavor: Malty_✓_ Balanced__ Hoppy_ Other__
I love the dark taste, very rich at the head, and finishes strong.
4. Overall Thoughts:
I will always choose this beer. It is strong so you probably can't have more than one but I truly recommended this one if you like Guinness or Milk Stout.
5. Craftmanship: Dull__ Average & 'Meh'__ Average & Delicious_✓ Exciting__
It's well crafted, dark body with a medium head.
6. Overall Rating: 8/10

Rafa's Solo Beer Review - Dogfish Head Aprihop

Dogfish Head Aprihop

General:

Style: An American style IPA with Apricots.

Glass: Tulip Pint.

Price: $10.99 per 4-pack.

ABV: 7.0

IBU: 50

Color: Pale with hints of copper/amber.

Aroma:
Malty__ Balanced__ Hoppy_✓ Other__

This beer's "apricot essence" are most present in its aroma. The apricot smell accentuates the hop aroma and really brings out the malt character of the beer. At 7% ABV, I was surprised not to notice any harsh alcohol fumes pervading through the aroma. The aroma overall lends more towards a citrusy aroma - but from the apricots, not the hops - and is well balanced with the smooth, cool, malty aroma from the pilsner malt.

Flavor:
Malty__ Balanced_✓ Hoppy__ Other__

The flavor conveys a very light bodied malt presence highly complimented with the sweetness of the apricots. The apricots finally kick in when tasting this beer, and are excellently paired with the malt flavor. There is virtually zero alcohol taste in this beer - a great attribute of an above average ABV beer.

Overall Thoughts:

A great beer overall, but I wonder why it's categorized as an IPA, because it lends itself more towards the smoother, more balanced side of the spectrum. Perhaps, instead, simply a pale ale with apricots? The ABV worried me, since a light bodied beer might have trouble masking a higher alcohol presence, but the craftmanship was great and masked the aroma and taste excellently. Overall a great beer.

Craftmanship:
Dull__ Average & 'Meh'__ Average & Delicious__ Exciting_✓

8/10 for craftmanship, only because this beer could easily be ruined with its complexity due to the inclusion of apricots. It is a well-balanced brew that explodes any assumptions that fruit beers need to be sour or Belgian-like. Even with the higher ABV, this makes for a great session beer - maybe just a shorter session. Terrific work guys!

Overall Rating:

8/10

Yard House at Merrick Park

Yard House @ Merrick Park - Coral Gables, FL 

Report Card
Beer Selection: 4
Beer-centrism: 4
Service: 5
Server Knowledge: 4
Price: $$


Rafa

We popped our blogging cherry! 4/22/2011

Yard House was a great first joint to check out. The wait on a Friday night was about 20 minutes after a call-ahead reservation, but we got beers and sat outside on the couches while we waited. The waitress who ordered our drinks was new on the job but was already very knowledgeable in beer and its culture and history. Our main waiter, David, was fun, talkative, and knew a fair amount about beer. Overall, it's a pretty classy place - but casual and relaxed at the same time; the atmosphere was busy but didn't feel crowded. With 110 beers on tap, the selection was very large. However, it lacked, I think, some great staple beers. I think it's philosophy was to have beers from all walks of life, because they had only one (sometimes two) beers from each brewery. They would benefit from incorporating a wider beer portfolio from those breweries they already include. I started the night off with a Stone IPA - a great IPA that I'll be sure to have again. Smooth, balanced, citrusy, and pale - a serious east coast IPA. It's a little high in alcohol to be considered a typical session beer that you might want for dinner, but it was definitely a great choice. It really embodied everything great about an east coast IPA (probably my favorite style) and was well worth the ramped-up ABV. With my burger, I had a Kona Fire Rock Pale Ale, a pretty good hoppy pale ale that complimented the burger very well. It went great with Mike's sweet potato fries, too! I loved that the place is one that can play all roles: casual, formal, dinner, just drinks, etc. A very versatile joint that must be seen. A bit pricey, but worth it, Yard House is a definite win in my book. Check it out. Cheers!


Tom
Yard House was a great spot for our first review to take place. Even though we called ahead 20 minutes, the wait was still another 20 minutes once we got there. During our wait we were escorted to the outside area to wait on their outdoor couches. Our waitress greeted us and took our first drink order - I went with the Rogue Shakespreare Stout, which was excellent. Even before our beers arrived, we were called inside to be seated. Then we switched waiters to possibly one of the coolest I’ve had, David, who was talkative, very funny, knowledgeable about beer and knowledgeable in general. With over 110 beers on tap, I wasn’t sure what to try next, but David offered me the Stoudt’s Double IPA, which was amazing and had a huge kick to it. As for food, I ordered the Avocado Swiss Burger - one of my favorite burgers ever - and it was great. Overall (besides the price) I would consider our first night out at the Yard House a win, and would recommend everyone to go there if you have the money. Cheers!

Skinny Mike

Cheers!

Great place for our first official review. Working down the street, I occasionally come for lunch with my boss (I actually had my first legal beer here) and it never fails to disappoint. I was rather bummed out when we had to wait after having called ahead, but it did allow us a chance to take a look at the list of 110 beers that they have on tap. The cute waitress was semi-knowledgeable, considering she was relatively new and didn't look like a beer drinker herself, and was actually able to pick out my disdain for sweet flowery beers (she could apparently read minds apart from serving drinks). She suggested a Cigar City Maduro Oatmeal Brown Ale which was a great choice as a starting point for the night, it was full bodied with a balanced nutty flavor to it. After being seated by (yet another cutie) the hostess we were blessed with possibly the memorable waiter I have ever had (it didn't hurt that we found out we had a few mutual friends) but David was awesome. He was pretty knowledgeable but did admit that he lacked the ability to know what beer to pair with one's entree selection. I did end up with a Kona Fire Rock Pale Ale to accompany my Hawaiian burger which was cooked and seasoned perfectly to create what I believe to be the best burger (that i have had yet) in Miami. The Kona went perfectly with the savory sweetness of the hamburger as well as the sweet potato fries that accompanied said burger. What better way to spend your time with friends than over a couple pints of beer and excellent food?  Cheers!

Incoming awesomeness.

Be sure to check back after the weekend for our first official post/review!