I was tempted to have a Colaweizen after working outside all day, but instead I had a Flying Dog Woody Creek White, which was exactly the right beer for the occasion. It was delicious: a smooth witbier with orange and coriander flavors. And it wasn't as in-your-face as I remember Hoegaarden being.

(I also really liked Flying Dog's Double Dog Double Pale Ale when I had it a few months ago. Although maybe it's the Double IPA style that I actually like. Bell's HopSlam? Dogfish Head 90 Minute IPA? These are good beers.)

There was an added buttery component when I had the witbier alongside spaghetti, but then again the Rising Moon I had afterwards was the same way. In fact... that was easily the tastiest Rising Moon I've ever had. There's something to be said for a good beer pairing.

Labels: American Amber Ale, Blue Moon Brewing, Flying Dog Brewery, Rising Moon, Witbier, Woody Creek White

Dinner tonight was spicy burgers, so I had a Blue Moon Rising Moon Spring Ale. It's a wheat beer brewed with lime leaves and zest.

Drinkable, but as with the Longshot Grape Ale and the Rogue Chipotle Ale, the extra flavoring was for the most part pretty hard to pick out. There was a hint of it, but not as much as I wanted.

I think I prefer just adding my own fresh lime to a lager: much crisper that way. That said, the last bit in my glass was very limey indeed — I'll try the German "rolling bottle" trick next time to even out the sediment and perhaps the taste.

Looking forward to trying the Blue Moon Harvest Moon Pumpkin Ale this fall. Town Hall's spectacular pumpkin ale completely sold me on that style.

Labels: American Amber Ale, Blue Moon Brewing, Rising Moon

On my way up north this weekend I stopped at Spirits of Nisswa — possibly the last good liquor store if you're heading up north&mdash and picked up a mix-pack of New Belgium and a growler(!) of Rogue Dead Guy Ale.

The New Belgium mix-pack had 1554, Fat Tire, Mothership Wit, and Mighty Arrow. I discovered that I don't really care for Fat Tire, which I've had many times before but never been so disappointed by, and Mighty Arrow was a standard pale. There's not much those can do from what I can tell.

I enjoyed the subtlety of the 1554, which didn't destroy my taste buds with its coffee taste, and I ended up really liking the Mothership Wit, albeit not quite as much as I like Springboard.

Do not attempt to finish a growler alone on an empty stomach. I probably won't be able to have Dead Guy for a while now.

Labels: 1554, American Amber Ale, APA, Belgian Dark Ale, Dead Guy Ale, Fat Tire, Growler, Maibock, Mighty Arrow, Mothership Wit, New Belgium Brewing, Rogue Ales Brewery, Spirits of Nisswa, Witbier