All Beer Blog

North Coast Brewing Company: Old Rasputin Russian Imperial Stout

Old Rasputin Russian Imperial Stout

North Coast Brewing Company opened in 1988 as a brewpub in Fort Bragg, CA. Owners Mark Ruedrich and Tom Allen claim to be pioneers in the craft brewing movement, which after tasting Old Rasputin, I tend to agree!

Now, on to the beer review! Old Rasputin Russian Imperial Stout is simply one of the most well-rounded and best tasting beers I have ever had. Period. It starts off by pouring a literally jet-black colored, thick beer into the glass.

Old Rasputin Russian Imperial Stout head

As you can see the head is rather large, usually 2 to 3 fingers. Its color is a lighter shade of the beer’s color, mocha or tan I’d say. The smell is of many things: chocolate, coffee, roasted malt and barley. Heavenly. The taste is even better! Definitely starts with the chocolate and coffee flavors leading into malt and even a bit of a hops at the finish to even it out. Very well balanced, doesn’t leave you wanting anything else; not too sweet and not too bitter, although the roasted malt flavor is the strongest. The mouth feel is almost creamy and stays heavy with minimal carbonation. It’s very smooth considering that this beer’s ABV is 9%, I didn’t really taste any alcohol.

All in all, I give this beer a 10/10! Definitely one of my favorite beers to drink. I would say this beer is perfect for dining, with dessert better yet. I would suggest trying this if you like a rich, heavy beer and don’t mind drinking it while eating.

Upland Brewing Company: Komodo Dragonfly Black IPA

Komodo Dragonfly Black IPA - Upland Brewery

I had a taste for some Upland Wheat from the Upland Brewing Company, so I inquired about their beer selection here in Chicago. I was told that they didn’t distribute anything to Illinois but was offered a free sample by mail, which I gladly accepted. Thanks!

I have reviewed a few beers from Upland Brewery here before, this is my new favorite! As you know, the Upland Brewery makes great Indiana beer; if interested, you can find a short history on my Dragonfly IPA beer review.

Komodo Dragonfly Black IPA head - Upland Brewery

Narragansett Lager

Beer Review & Beer Rating: Narragansett Lager

Finally, a new beer review! Narragansett Lager is brewed by The Narragansett Brewing Company and has been since 1890. Originating in Cranston, Rhode Island, it has been producing American beer for over 100 years. They have an interesting history; apparently six businessmen from Rhode Island got together in 1888 with $150,000 and started a brewery. At one point they were the largest brewing operation in New England. According to their website, during Prohibition they were granted the right to brew, bottle and sell beer by the IRS. Here is a direct quote from their website:

By the mid sixties, the Narragansett Brewing Company was providing steady pay, good benefits and free beer to some 850 workers. The company culture not only spawned lifelong friendships and good times, but also encouraged beer drinking during the workday.

- Narragansett website

I wish I could find a job like that. A beer blog will do for now. After experiencing great success a series of legal troubles and unfortunate outcomes forced the closure of the brewery in the 1980s. Then in 2005, ironically more New England investors purchased the rights to Narragansett Beer from the previous owner and began brewing the great beer once again.

The good folks over at the brewery were kind enough to send me a 6 pack of 16oz cans, or ‘Gansett tall boys as they call them. I am very thankful ,thanks! I had never heard of them before, the beer or the company. I was pleasantly surprised at the quality of the beer. The beer actually smelled like most Polish beers, grains and a bit of malt. The appearance was crisp and clear, with a pale yellow color to it.

Beer Review and Beer Rating: Narragansett Lager

As you can see there was a nice head but left minimal lacing. The carbonation was definitely there but was light, making it really easy to drink. The taste was pretty good, grainy and you could taste more hops than you could smell. You get malt at the very start and the hoppy bitterness at the end of a nice big sip. Pretty refreshing.

All in all I give this a beer rating of 7/10! This beer is easily a replacement for Miller Light or Coors Lite, the Midwest equivalents. Again, I had never heard of this before as I have never seen it in any liquor stores in the Chicago area. I can’t tell you were to get it in the Midwest but it seems this beer is easily acquired anywhere in the New England area.

Regards!

Harnas Beer

Harnas is brewed by Okocim Brewery, the same people who brew Okocim. You can refer to the first Okocim post for a brief history of the brewery.

This Polish beer was not the best I’ve ever had. It poured a pale golden color and as you can see there was basically no head or lacing. It smelled like Okocim as well, like faint hops and maybe some grain. To me it tasted like Okocim, but worse. It started off tasting like grains and a small hint of hops. It finished sweet, which was not a good thing. It’s 6% alc/vol but you don’t taste it, just the poor quality beer.

All in all, I give this beer a 5/10! It tasted watered down and basically like an American beer macrobeer. Not one of the best beer ratings here. I would suggest getting some other Polish beer if you are looking in that direction. This is good if you can find it for cheap, which isn’t hard here in Chicago; I got a 4 pack of pints for $4.

Regards!

Na zdrowie!

Honey Amber Rose

Honey Amber Rose is brewed by Beautiful Brews, Inc. in Boca Raton, Florida. It is the first beer from Florida I have reviewed. The folks over there were kind enough to send me a few brews to sample and review, thanks! I have to say I was skeptical at first because it is marketed as a beer for women and it is technically a fruit beer (not my favorite). According to their website they revived an 1830’s beer recipe that called for rose hip shells, very  healthy apparently and very unique.

The beer poured a hazy, golden caramel color; almost brown. As you can see, there wasn’t much head and there was minimal lacing. It smelled, to me, like the rose hip shells they brew it with. There were also hints of honey and a little malt. It tasted pretty much the same as the smell but with more honey. The beer is 4% alc/vol so you don’t taste any of the alcohol. Not my favorite beer but a female companion loved it and drank one of the bottles.

All in all, I give this beer a 6/10! Not the best beer rating we have here but not the worst either. I would say that if you know a woman who would like to try a beer pass this along to her. I don’t know anywhere in Chicago that sells this beer so it will be hard to find it. I’m sure if you are really interested you could email the brewery and see what you can arrange.

Regards!