Episode 6: Winter Bur & Boozin’ With Your Favorite Video Games

This week we discussed:

We reviewed two Winter Beers:

Episode notes:

We had planned to review two saisons this episode, but we became irresponsible in the days leading up to the recording and drank them both.

New Belgium Snow Day

Review

Appearance: Opaque blackness with a sheen of carbonated bronze, nice head with little retention and pleasant lacing.
Smell: Malty graininess, light yeast, raisin-y esters, aromatic hops and a little funk.
Taste: Tastes largely like it smells. The malt is the prominent flavor, with a somewhat spicy yet remote sweetness that speaks of snow-covered fields and elementary school being closed. A pleasant undertone of hops adds that bus routes have been cancelled. A little roasted and bitter, but unobtrusively so.
Mouthfeel: Light but lingering, it is somewhat creamy without being heavy, goes down smooth not sticky, yet lets the taste stay behind. Very little heat, with forgettable but appropriate carbonation.
Drinkability: This is the kind of beer you order in November/December by the pitcher while you are watching the game. You can drink plenty, but it doesn’t insist that it be consumed.

Score (out of 5)
Devon: 3.0
Brian: 2.5

Review

Appearance: A lighter daybreak brown, nice initial head, little retention, next to no lacing.
Smell: Yeast, malt and a little bit of skunk, not much of hops, and a smell of almost citrus fruit that disappears and resurfaces as you inhale.
Taste: A slightly skunky taste as well, with Roasty grain and an almost pilsner-like baked bread quality. A subtle sweetness co-mingled with bitterness lingers after the prominent tastes have dissipated.
Mouthfeel: Mediocre carbonation, a little bit of creaminess, marginally detectable heat.
Drinkability: I could have a pitcher, but I’d need something to eat with it. I’m not really a fan of drinking it by itself, but with a steak or with burgers it’d be pretty sessionable.

Score (out of 5)
Devon: 3.5
Brian: 3.0