Don’t judge. Yes, I’m lame. Yes, I’m old. I ended up drinking at home…sue me! Ok, now that I have cleared that out of my system, I can at least talk about some great craft beer.
Since I knew that working on Saturday might make me want to be lazy and do nothing on Sunday, I went ahead and planned by scoring a nice little bomber bounty from H-E-B. Within those options were three beers I had never enjoyed before and one that is delicious, but one that can get me a little tipsy.
First up for the day was the Strange Land Alemannia Alt. The humble altbier is making quite the comeback these days and its popularity is at its peak. I attribute this mostly to the overwhelming success of Hops & Grain Alt-eration, which is one of the best altbiers I’ve ever tasted. The Alemannia Alt has a little different taste from the Alt-eration, yet both are delicious options. The malty flavor is very nice and it finishes sweet. For those who have never enjoyed a bottle-conditioned beer, it’s important you know that when you finish the pour from the bottle, you will see quite a bit of the yeast particles. It’s perfectly normal and doesn’t affect the flavor at all. You should catch a slight spicy flavor due to the addition of clove and pepper to the recipe. To me, this tastes like a bottle of bread, yet it doesn’t sit very heavily. Overall, it was a beautiful beer that pours with a nice chocolatey appearance.
Considering I didn’t eat a ton of food on Sunday, I wanted to make sure I didn’t drink too much. To finish the day, I decided to give the Texian Donkey Lady a try. I’ve been acquiring a taste for sour beers over the past year or so and this beer is probably the best sour I’ve had so far. Picture a granny smith apple pie in liquid form. You catch the sour apple taste right when it hits your palate and then the finish is a spice that tastes like a mix of allspice and cinnamon. My wife’s assessment is more of an apple cobbler. She’s not much of a fan of sour beers. She tried it and said it was delicious, even finishing off the bomber for me! Honestly, for those who maybe aren’t big beer drinkers, this might be a nice choice for you. I enjoy sour foods and the beers have been a natural progression. So far, this has been the best of the bunch!
Next week for Sunday Funday, I’ll be celebrating my 35th birthday. Since I plan on enjoying quite a few excellent craft beers next week, I’ll just have to take thorough notes while I’m out. This Sunday Funday will hopefully be the last one at the house for a while.