Chimay Rouge, Scourmount Abbey, Belguim

Alas, a Belgian beer, the Chimay Red or Rouge as the Belgians call it. The ale starts of dark and meanders it way to a light floral finish, as the Belgians tend to do. The aftertaste is sweet, approaching a dry bitterness. The beer does have a 7% ABV, which it needs to offset the floral flavors that suggest more of a wine spritzer. All in all, the Chimay Rouge is decent for a Belgian and gets a 3.0.

Weekend Notes: Worst Beer Ever

So I was out at a local Irish pub the other day, and it being fall in Massachusetts, decided to partake of a Sam Adams Octoberfest. Now, Sam October is a great beer, definitely a 4.5 in my opinion, so I was shocked when I took my sip from my draught and well, worst beer ever. It didn't have the smoothness or the caramel tones that I know and love in a Sam October. It tasted horribly. It just goes to show that you never know what you are getting when a beer comes out of a tap or out of a bottle.

Leviathan Imperial IPA, Harpoon Brewery, South Boston, MA

So, many people I know use the Harpoon IPA as their barometer of a good IPA, so I was puzzled when I heard they rolled out the Leviathan Imperial IPA, I mean why ruin a good thing? The thing is, the texture and taste are vastly different, you wouldn't know these beers were even related. The Leviathan has a strong alcohol bite. It bitters the tongue as well as the recesses of the mouth and throat. The alcohol tinge dissipates enough to allow you to catch the grapefruit undertones. More carbonated than other imperials which tend to go syrupy in texture. The 10% ABV is something to be reckoned with. The Leviathan, much like it's Harpoon predecessor also gets a 4.0, but for different reasons. You definitely have to be looking for a sharp beer when trying this one.

Wingwalker Pale Ale, City Brewery, La Crosse, WI

For a beer as good as Wingwalker Pale Ale, they sure have a terrible website. As you can see there is not much going on here techwise, and it makes me think that this is just another big corporate company beer packaged differently, but if I do say this is one fantastic beer. The caramel apple malt flavor is a descendant of ambrosia itself. The beer is quite simply delicious. The flavor, malt, alcohol combination should earn legendary combo status alongside Tinker to Evers to Chance. The 5.4% ABV makes this a beer to be reckoned with. I definitely recommend you pick it up. Wingwalker Pale gets a 4.5

Sea Dog Brewery, Bangor, Maine

So the past few days I have reviewed the beers from my trip to Sea Dog Brewery in Bangor, Maine a few weeks ago. And the reviews didn't come back that hot. I found the brews lacking a bit of malt power and they came off as flat. Now I am a power IPA, Strong Ale kind of guy so someone else might think these beers are great, and I do admit they flavoring was there, just not enough. I didn't do a tour or anything just sat down for some apps, some beers and well some Big Buck Hunter. Some things you should know, I sampled small amounts of the Pale Ale and the Pumpkin Ale, and they were good, in fact the Pale Ale was great. I didn't sample enough to review however. I was also disappointed that they had sevrers who hadn't tried the beers and couldn't offer a suggestion. General consensus at the table was that the server possibly wasn't 21, which I can understand, BUT you are a brewery, where people come in to try your beers and want to know suggestions, don't hire under 21 servers. Oh well, maybe next time I visit they will have their act together, if not I did mention they have Big Buck Hunter, right?

Old Gollywobbler Brown Ale, Sea Dog Brewing Co., Bangor, ME

The Old Gollywobbler Brown Ale is another beer from Sea Dog where I wished they stepped it up a few more notches maltwise. I think this and Sea Dog's IPA would be fantastic with just a tad stronger flavor. The beers come off terribly weak and flat. The Gollywobbler has a light brown caramel, honeyish flavor that needs some enhancements, but the roots are there. Maybe a step up beyond the 4.0% ABV would help too. Like it's sister IPA, this beer leaves you wanting, wanting flavor, wanting hops, wanting ABV, but unfotunately not wanting more Sea Dog. The Gollywobbler gets a 2.5.