Samuel Adams and the “Imperial-List”
(A sad violin plays in the background) What’s the matter Bubby? You say your beer-life has been a bit boring lately? Can’t seem to find that beer that sets the salivary glands in motion? You obviously haven’t been down the beer aisle at your local grocers lately…
Okay, I know many of you “hard-core” beer geeks are still left wanting; Stone and Avery haven’t made it here along with countless other great American brews. But, we are at a point where one can at least find one decent example of many of the most traditional, popular or trendy beer styles.
Earlier this year, The Boston Beer Company rolled out what they call their “Imperial Series”; a release of three relatively traditional beers that could be classified as “big”, but certainly not extreme. What’s the difference you ask? Well, I would generally say that the “extreme” moniker is used when the beer goes way-off the “traditional” reservation, like maybe an 11% Pilsner that’s brewed with cinnamon or something. On the other hand “big” is just big, which could mean big on the hops or maybe big in the alcohol department or both; you get the picture. The Sam Adams Imperial Series beers are big beers, with a little “extreme-ness” by way of a 10.3% witbier.
The first beer in the series is the Sam Adams Double Bock. This beer has been brewed as a seasonal beer by Boston Beer Company since 1988. The recipe is based upon and closely follows a very traditional German Doppelbock beer, with a very rich malty flavor and texture. The beer is stronger than its most traditional German counterparts.
Next we have the Imperial White Beer. A rich, spicy ale based on the Belgian Witbier style, though twice as strong as tradition would suggest. BBC’s brewers do a fine job of making this work at the higher abv levels. Traditional witbiers use citrusy spices to enhance the refreshing nature of the wheat based beer, but the spices in this bigger version work to add enough complexity to keep things interesting on the way up to 10% abv. I am going to leave one of these out for Santa this year along with his cookies…
Finally there is the Imperial Stout. This is the Sam Adams take on the beer style that was responsible for bringing the term “Imperial” to brewing as it was a style that was specifically brewed for Russia’s Catherine the Great; so you could technically say that this a 9.2%abv “chick beer”. Dark chocolate (cocoa) flavors dominate this rich and creamy beer. This is the beer you want for dessert, either by itself or paired with something like vanilla ice cream or something with cherries and cream.
The Boston Beer Company’s website covers each beer and also suggests food pairings. Three beers does not a food pairing toolkit make, but it’s a heck of a lot better than our options this time last year…
September 22nd, 2009 at 10:38 am
Loved the stout. Thought Ayinger’s and Troeg’s doppelbocks were better. Haven’t had the white yet. Will have to try that next.
Power Park was selling Rochefort 8 at Beers and ‘Eers for $3 a bottle. I think it was just “special pricing” to introduce some crafts, but I was still impressed. They also had Sierra Anniversary Ale.
September 22nd, 2009 at 1:26 pm
I liked the Imperal Stout, then the Impy Bock-the White, not so much. And Speaking of Sam Adams limited series, the American Legion in my town accidentally recieved a case of the “Longshot” beers by mistake.
Rather than them having to send it back, I happily volunteered to drink it. Hey, for $2 a bottle, I can even tolerate the Cranberry Witbeer….
September 22nd, 2009 at 3:08 pm
I am sorry I missed the “Eers and Beers”, but I had to attend a friend’s surprise birthday party. I too prefer Ayinger or Troegs.
September 24th, 2009 at 7:27 am
i’m not big on witbier, so maybe that’s why i enjoyed the imperial white. i thought it was pretty darn solid with a lot of intensity and balance.
the stout is good too. not my favorite stout, but good.
haven’t tried the doppelbock yet.
September 25th, 2009 at 8:20 pm
$o.o2
Troegs, Ayinger, Sam Adams. In that order.
September 25th, 2009 at 8:32 pm
The Russian stout is good. Very accessible for the style. Loads of body and flavor.
Apropos of nothing, here’s my top 10-15 in no order:
Stone IRS,
Hoppin’ Frog BORIS,
Victory Storm King,
Samuel Smith Imperial,
Avery The Czar,
North Coast Old Rasputin,
Southern Tier OAT, Great Divide Yeti,
Founders Breakfast Stout (and the Kentucky and Canadian variations),
Alesmith Speedway Stout,
Dogfish Head World Wide Stout,
Weyerbacher XIII,
Great Lakes Blackout Stout,
Flying Dog Gonzo Porter (yeah, a Baltic Porter. I know),and
East End’s Homewood Reserve.
I’ve never had a Kate the Great or Dark Lord; they’d likely be on the list.
October 2nd, 2009 at 9:24 pm
The double bock and and imperial white made thier way up to the oak hill/fayetteville area this week, along with Great Lakes’ Nosferatu and Commodore Perry (Still waiting on Sierra Nevada Torpepo and the SA Imperial Stout). Is the SA Double Bock really the same as the seasonal they used to brew? Didn’t pick it up, as the old seasonal used to be widely available in WV a few years back. The Imperial White is up there as one of the worst beers I’ve ever had the displeasure of drinking. Poured nicely, with a very thin, lacey head dissolving away quickly. The color can only be described as a somewhat artifical orangish red. Smell of coriander and orange dominates. It boasts of a strong mouthfeel and body, and it lives up to that, but not in a good way. It has a very sweet and malty mouthfeel, and almost syrup-y finish, not indicative of the characterics of a good wheat. I’d actually prefer a blue moon to this. The bottle actually says to enjoy it aged, so I’m putting the remaining three in the beer cellar, not because I want to age them, but more I don’t want to subject myself to that taste for a long time.
On the others, Great Lakes rarely disappoints. The Octobertfest wasn’t anything special and I’m not a fan of Burning River, but they make an excellent beer most of the time. The Nosferatu, labeled as a “Stock Ale” (classified as an Imperial Red) was exceptional. Great balance of bitterness, a slighty sweet malt aftertaste, and a decent hop profile. Much better deal @ under $10 a 4 pack than the Rogue bomber equivalent. I’d had commodore perry many times before, and always loved it. Having been two years removed from a decent IPA in WV, this was like heaven. Perfect drinkability (though coming from the SA Imperial White, a Yuengling would have tasted good comparitively). Taste and finish were dominated by fresh hops. At 7.5% ABV, it’s no slouch of an IPA. Big on taste, with a moderate price tag. More well-balanced than the SN anniversay ale, though a lighter feel than Celebration (a better IPA IMO, and hoping we get it here this year).
October 3rd, 2009 at 11:29 am
Has anyone seen Sierra Nevada Torpedo yet?
It was a pretty rare beer for a while, but I’ve seen it crop up more at the PA distributors so I was hoping it would start filtering into WV.
October 3rd, 2009 at 12:43 pm
Hopefully, SN Torpedo will arrive in WV soon.
From what I’ve read, the demand for it was wildly underestimated, and SN’s been hustling to get production up to demand.
October 4th, 2009 at 11:36 am
Another Sierra Nevada one to look out for: Harvest 2009. Highly wet hopped, past batches have been great. I spotted it in Columbus OH yesterday but was focusing on grabbing things I’d never had, i.e. weird buckeye brews (they’ve got these hippie run breweries over there that make some pretty good product between tokes. I guess one has to be either drunk or stoned to live there. I keed, I keed).
Also, Celebration Ale from our friends in Chico should be just around the corner.
Anyone spot either of these, please post the location.
Finally, who’s going to Bramwell?