Shiner Cheer

If you're a fan of good beer (and who isn't?), then Winter is the season for you. I mean sure there are some nice Spring and Fall seasonal brews, and even a few decent summer ones (St. Arnold's Lawnmower comes to mind), but Winter is when breweries usually pull all the stops and make some great dark beers that confuse the palate and stretch the lines of what beer can be.

With the Spoetzl Brewery being one of my favorites on account of their still-amazing Shiner Bock (and their new series of yearly brews, capping next year on their 100th anniversary with Shiner 100), I couldn't wait to get a chance to try their Winter seasonal, Shiner Cheer.

A bit of a disclaimer first though. I can't say I'm real high on fruit in beer. I mean I love Pyramid Apricot on a nice warm day, and I'll occasionally throw a lime in a Mexican beer or an Orange slive in a Hefeweizen, but as a general rule I'd like my beer to be beer and not a beer/fruit juice hybrid. So I was a little unsure going in when I learned that it was an Ale brewed with peaches and pecans (though those are Texas staples, so it's not terribly surprising). It's been strangely tough to come by for the past few weeks, but I finally got some.

It's got an unusual ruby/brown color to it, but it pours nicely. The head comes out like it should, and in the end it looks like a beer should. Upon tasting, the first thing you will taste is that classic Shiner bitterness (I recognized it immediately from the Bock) caused by burning the malt. It's not a bad thing, in fact it's what makes the Shiner Bock what it is, but it's definately noticeable here and it lingers. The pecans are very understated, but after a couple seconds the peaches become blatantly obvious. It's strange, it takes a few seconds before the flavor of peach kicks in, and even when it does it's fairly understated-theres just enough peach to let you know that it's there. In fact, the peaches were much more evident on the nose, which I found surprising.

In the end though, I'd rate it a good beer-but not a great one. It doesn't have that heaviness that is generally associated with a Winter beer (to warm you) and that you'd expect. The peach flavor is nice, but overall the beer is generally unremarkable. A little malt bitterness, a little peach, and that's it-its honestly just a little too simple for me. I'm not sure that there's enough peach to satisfy those who like a sweeter beer, and I don't think those that like a heavy beer will be terribly moved by the peaches. I'd suggest that it's a good beer to try, and I'm glad that I did, but I couldn't see myself having it more than a couple times before the end of winter.

A Programming Note

Just wanted to offer a quick programming note.

Effective immediately, the Booze Of The Week selections will be no more. This isn't to say that I will stop reviewing alcoholic beverages, as that's obviously a staple of this blog, but the truth of the matter is my drinking patterns have changed as I've gotten older and sought to lose weight (hey, i'm down 45lbs since March, so it's a good thing) and I just don't drink enough beer/wine to make it feasible.

So instead of a booze of the week, I will just write up reviews as I try new things or otherwise feel inclined to review things. I've got a beer review to post shortly, and a nice Scotch review for later this week.

Robert Mondavi Private Selection Vinetta

While at the aforementioned wine tasting yesterday I tried quite a few fantastic wines. And I'd love to make Far Niente Cabernet or something of it's ilk the booze of the week, but the fact of the matter is none of us can afford to buy something like that for anything but the most special of occasions. Static and Wine supports alcohol consumption on a regular business, not the teetotaling consumption only on special holidays that some folks endorse. Moderation and safety are obviously key, but wine should be a part of people's lives. So as I stumbled upon one of the more underated and affordable wines I've had in a while, the little hamster started running on it's wheel in my head and I knew I had a lock for BotW. So without further adieu, Robert Mondavi Private Selection Vinetta is this week's selection for Booze Of The Week.

This is an extremely affordable (~$10 a bottle) wine that over delivers for it's price point, but first thing's first, what is a vinetta? Well the word Vinetta, while sometimes used as a name, is just a variant of Vincentia, the latin for vineyard. In this case though, vinetta is the name Robert Mondavi uses for it's bordeaux-style blend. It's a blend of 68% cabernet, 14% merlot, 11% petite verdot, 5% malbec, and the elusive 2% cab franc. Why they chose to call it vinetta is anyone's guess, but I will tell you it is quite lovely.

While a little fruitier than one would expect from an actual Bordeaux, I think it's a fair comparison. It's a well balanced wine that has a fair amount of staying power but not overly tannic or heavy. The nose is mostly oak and plum while the taste is cherries, cocoa, licorice, and a bit of smoke and/or oak.

It's available in both 1.5L and 750mL sizes, has a faux cork, and the fruit is from the Central and North Coast Appellations. I'd pair it with grilled meat (though it might be a little underwhelming for a big steak, think lamb or pork) or blue cheese.

It's one of those rare few bottles of wine that overdelivers on it's price point, then again that's true of most Robert Mondavi wines (if you can find a better Sauv Blanc than Woodbridge for $9 a 1.5L I'm all ears). I could easily see paying $14.99 for this and consider it quite the bargain at $10. So there you have it, you know the drill, drop me line if you've had it or if you find yourself grabbing a bottle this weekend. Cheers!

Jose Cuervo Tradicional Reposado

As it often does, this week's BotW selection found me versus me finding it. As there I was at El Guapo's in Denton, TX. trying to decide what to drink, not wanting the sugars of beer or wine, and opting instead to order Sauza Hornitos, my standard tequila, on the rocks when Big D the Bartender told me I wanted the Tradicional instead. I insisted no, I prefer the Hornitos, but he insisted as well-and being a friend of mine he can do that-and poured me the Tradicional instead. With three cubes and a wedge of lime which I didn't find myself needing. It was an exceptionally smooth, albeit unspectacular tequila, and on account of being in my belly and tasty is this week's selection for Booze Of The Week.

Before we go into the tequila itself though, a few tequila basics. Tequila is distilled from the Agave plant generally in the Tequila region of Mexico which is near Guadalajara in the state of Jalisco. It is similar but not the same as Mezcal, another spirit which most folks know for the worm in the bottle. There are two types of tequila, mixtos and 100% Agave. Mixtos use up to 49% of other sugars in the fermentation process where as the latter is obviously 100% agave, with the best tequilas being 100% blue agave. As with other spirits, there's also an aging classification system with tequila. Blanco (or silver) tequila spends less than 2mos in oak barrels, oro (or gold) is blended with aged tequilas, and mixed with coloring and or sugars, reposado tequila is aged between 2mos and a year in oak barrels, and anejo is aged 1-3 years in oak barrels. Recently an extra anejo category was established for tequilas aged a minimum of 3 years in oak so ya, they've got that going for them.

Normally at this point I'd also go into the history of Jose Cuervo, but it's a really long and strange history. Suffice it to say that there have been several different Jose Cuervos, although José Antonio de Cuervo was the original in 1758 with a grant from Spain for the distillery, and that tequila was the drink of the masses and/or proletariat during most every war and uprising within Mexico. For such a weird beverage it has an equally weird history.

As for the subject here, Jose Cuervo Tradicional Reposado, it is obviously a reposado tequila-and beyond that a fantastic entry level high end tequila. On account of a shortage of Blue Agave a few years back tequila tends to be fairly expensive for anything but the most rotgut, and as a result of that and our familiarity with the Margarita, most people have little regard for high end tequila. This however qualifies as a higher end tequila, and at ~$25 a bottle isn't prohibitely priced. It's quite smooth, although you can definitely taste the alcohol, with a little bit of smoke and wood on the taste and a fairly long finish. It's very indicative of a reposado tequila, and a nice entry level selection for those not wanting to spend the money on a high end tequila which can easily run $50 a bottle.

Maredsous

Originally I had something else in mind for this week's selection, but between yesterday evenings trip to happy hour at the Cock and Bull and the couple bottles that T-bone left in my fridge before he left this weekend, I'm calling an audible at the line and choosing Maredsous as this week's Booze Of The Week.

One disclaimer though, there are actually two different types of Maredsous. They're quite similar to each other, but one is generally draft only and is 8% alcohol whereas the bottled version is 10% alcohol. There's also a blonde that's 6% but I've never seen it, so I'm going to pretend it doesn't exist. The Maredsous 8, as the 8% version is called, is a dubble ale which is a designation simply that it is stronger than a pilsner but weaker than a triple, which is what the Maredsous 10 is.

Maredsous is often confused with Trappist (or Abbey) ales which are actually produced in a monk's abbey, as has been the tradition for hundreds of years. Chimay is a prime example of this, except that Maredsous is not actually produced at the Maredsous Abbey but is instead licensed to another company (although the Maredsous Abbey does produce Maredsous Cheese). It's also worth noting that the producer of Maredsous (Duvel Moortgat Brewery) are also the makers of Duvel, which was founded in 1871 (Maredsous only dates back to 1963).

But that's not what you care about, you want to know more about the beer itself (unless you've already had it). So I will tell you that it's pretty widely available at specialty stores and pub-style bars in the US before telling you that for such a high alcohol beer, it's amazingly smooth and sweet. There's a little more hop and spice on the Maredsous 10, but both of the beers share a characteristic of being dark beers that are not bitter on account of the burnt malt, but instead strangle sweet, and as a result one of those trap beers that's so good you don't realize how drunk out of your mind you're getting as you drink it-consider that a pint is the equivalent to almost two pints of your average American pilsner, and you know why this beer has produced so many drunken nights for so many folks.

It's also worth noting that Maredsous is bottle-conditioned, meaning that it's fermented in the bottle and can last several years if stored upright in a cool place, unlike most beers which spoil in a matter of months. It also means there will be a fair amount of yeast and sediment in the bottle, so be prepared.

But ultimately, the charm of this beer is that it's a dark beer that doesn't taste quite like a dark beer, but at the same time is a great cold weather beer that's chock full of alcohol. And while I envision this re-appearing as the BotW come December or January, its also this week's Booze Of The Week.

White Horse Scotch Whisky

I am well aware that the odds are, you're probably not a big whisky drinker. Even lower are the odds that you're a Scotch whisky drinker. I understand that whisky isn't for everyone, really I do. But the thing is, I am a big fan, and this is my blog-and I've absolutely fallen in love with White Horse Scotch over the past month or so, and it is for that reason that it's this week's selection for Booze Of The Week. Well that and I haven't delved into the realm of spirits yet, choosing instead beers and wines thus far.

White Horse was originally distilled in 1861, and was used as the carriage whisky for the White Horse Inn in Edinburgh (hence the name). It is a blended whisky, containing 40% single malts including the infamous Talisker Scotch whisky. Talisker is well know for being an extremely peat-y single malt (unlike other whiskies, Scotch's malted barley is cooked in peat-fueld kilns which gives it that smokey flavor), and that taste of peat definately translates to White Horse. It's a mellow, full-bodied Scotch with a fair amount of honey and peat in the taste profile.

It's not a starter whisky, but instead a nice bridge between blended whiskies and single malt whiskies, giving homage to both. Some folks swear by blended Scotch's like Johnnie Walker, while others swear by single-malt whiskies like MacAllen. I think this is a scotch that can satisfy both palates, and that is why it's this week's selection for Booze Of The Week.

Czechvar

Whereas last week I offered up a brown ale as my selection for Booze of the Week, I thought this week I'd change things up a bit. Yes it's still a beer, but it's still great beer drinking weather outside, and great beer drinking entertainment inside (football). Instead, I thought I'd just offer up a different style, and it is for that reason that Czechvar is this week's selection for Booze Of The Week.

A lot of people are down on pilsners, for the obvious reason that most of your generic mass produced American beers are done in a pilsner style. But there are a lot of great pilsner beers out there, with the best known probably being Pilsner Urquell, and the pilsner style doesn't mean generic and tasteless. Pilsner beers were originally developed in the 1840s in Plzeň, Bohemia (now the Czech Republic) as an alternative to the Bohemian ales that had been produced up to that point which were dreadfully inconsistent and often downright terrible. So the citizens of Plzeň formed their own brewery now known as Plzeňský Prazdroj where they expounded on the German experimentation with lagers (lagers are bottom fermenting beers, as opposed to ales which are top fermenting) to create their own style of lager, now know worldwide as Pilsner lager.

Czechvar, as it's known in the United States (it's known as Budvar in the Czech Republic, but despite pre-dating Budweiser couldn't use that name here for obvious copyright reasons), is one of my favorite pilsners. It's a very light lager beer, with a clean palate and a crisp but not overpowering taste of hops and little to no malt. I can attest to the Czech Budvar being a fair bit better than the Czechvar by the time it gets here (much like Heineken is a little better in Holland), but it's still a fantastic beer, and a great example of a good pilsner, of what a pilsner should taste like. So grab yourself a bottle, raise a glass, and think about the tiny town of Plzeň.

Newcastle Brown Ale

It's starting to cool down outside, so it's time to jettison those watery Pilsners which make for a decent hot weather drink but can easily be substituted with something darker as the weather gets cooler. Which isn't to say it's cold yet, so while it might be a little early in the year for a nice dark Porter, it's perfect for a nice Ale. Especially if you're in Texas getting pelted with rain and wind right now. And so, Newcastle Brown Ale is this week's selection for Booze Of The Week.

As the name suggests, Newcastle is a Brown Ale, and in many regards it's as generic a brown ale as you're going to get. Not heavily aromatic, not overly hoppy, and most certainly not overly complex. It's a simple beer with a slightly nutty and caramel taste as a result of the roasting of the malt (which is what gives it it's color). Some people claim to taste notes of peach with it, something I don't get at all-but that's half the fun right? It's a great introduction to brown ales, and more importantly perfect for sipping in the cool fall weather.

In Newcastle, the beer is often called simply "dog," with the name being a euphemism of "I'm going to go walk the dog" or "I've got to see a man about a dog" which means you're going to the pub. It has been brewed in Tyne & Wear, England since 1927.

So grab yourself a pint or a six pack, have a few drinks, and of course let me know what you think. Cheers.

Shiner 99

With all due apology to those of you that live outside of Texas and/or don't have access to a Whole Foods, Shiner 99 is this week's Booze Of The Week. If you can't get it, well, that sucks for you. For what better beverage to mark the beginning of football season and the total waste of a day that becomes Saturday and Sunday, than ice cold beer. And no, just any beer will not do, no sir, we want something to mark the importance that is this weekend, and this is probably the best new beer outside of Portland I've tried in the past few years.

Shiner 99 is the most recent in the yearly series of craft beers Shiner (best known for their Bock) has been running out, culminating next year with their 100th anniversary. It is a Helles style lager, Helles meaning "bright," so it's got a golden color and a noticeable malt sweetness. It's also got a bit of hoppy spice, but is certainly not overly hopped in the vein of an IPA. It's most certainly not a heavy beer, instead it's a relatively light beer but with a lot more body and in my opinion flavor than your traditional light beer. It runs on average about $6.49 for a 6-pack, has 4.9% alcohol by volume, and an 18 IBU.

Helles style beers were pioneered in Munich in the 1890s as a fearful response to the growth and popularity of Pilsner beers, which were brewed in Bavaria. As a result, it's similar in body and spice to a Czech pilsner but also had that German malt that is standard of a Munich beer.

So pick yourself up a 6-pack, get it nice and cold, and break it out Saturday afternoon. Just be sure to save some for Sunday too. And as always, feedback is encouraged-let me know what you think!

Smoking Loon Pinot Noir

Smoking Loon Pinot Noir is this week's selection for Booze Of The Week.

It's the end of the month, and as we all try to stretch out that paycheck over the last weekend of the month, you will find this to be an extraordinarily affordable wine at $9.99 retail that consistently over-delivers. Finding a pinot noir under $10 is tough, finding a good one is even tougher, and finding a good one that is from California nearly impossible. This wine delivers on all counts.

Dark, ruby red in color, it has a strong nose with lots of cherry. On the tongue it's got strawberry, cherry, a tinge of black pepper and a bit of oak and it ends with a smooth, excellent finish.

I know you're thinking to yourself that red wine in the summer doesn't sound terribly appealing, but this wine is very light, not at all heavy and makes fine summer drinking. It can also be paired with most foods as it's not at all overbearing. It's a great wine for sipping while you cook and then drinking with your meal.

Give it a try, and as always, please let me know what you think.

Booze Of The Week - Geyser Peak Sauvignon Blanc

So as part of expanding my blog from it's myspace beginnings to the intertubes at large, I wanted to debut a weekly column that would highlight my professional expertise. So every week I will post a new item, be it beer, wine, or spirits that I'd like to suggest you give a try. If you've had it, please let me know what you thought....and if you haven't, well why not pick it up, give it sip, and them let me know what you think.


Much like good food, part of the joy of good drink is discussing and sharing it with friends. And since it's part of my chosen career to try new things, I felt it would be appropriate to then share the best with you, dear reader. So without further adieu, this week's Booze Of The Week is Geyser Peak Sauvignon Blanc





Geyser Peak Sauvignon Blanc is one of my favorite summer wines. While some middle-tier Sauvignon Blancs tend towards a more round and fruity style, this one maintains a very nice crisp citrus taste that finishes nicely, not evaporating in your mouth within seconds, but instead lingering so you get to truely experience it. And the best part? It generally retails right around $9.99, the juice most certainly outperforms it's price point and is a great value.


I think it's a fantastic pre-meal wine, opening up your taste buds for the meal ahead. That said, it also pairs very well with a meal, especially seafood. The lemon, lime, and gooseberry flavors blend seemlessly with sushi, fish, shrimp, and scallops. And while most people would go with a Riesling for spicy food, I've had this Sauvignon Blanc with Vietnamese food a couple times and it's a perfect compliment-it's heaven with a spicy shrimp imperial roll.


It's from the California Appellation and the winemaker is Mick Schroeter. And while Geyser Peak also makes a very nice Cabernet Sauvignon (their 2003 vintage especially was fantastic) and a nice Meritage, the Sauvignon Blanc is the best known of their wines, and for good reason. Nicely chilled, it's an absolute delight. So grab yourself a bottle, and let me know what you think-I think you'll love it.