Grand Teton Pursuit of Hoppiness Imperial Red Ale.

Since I seem to be on a roll with Grand Teton thus far, I thought I'd try out some of the bombers, which had decent reviews on BA. I picked up Lost Continent along with Pursuit of Hoppiness. The first thing by which I'm struck (typed struct initially -> too much kernel time; also debated on whether to use '=' or '=='. Thought about it and decided to go with the less ambiguous implication arrow. In the time I've taken to type the last sentence, I've reevaluated my position and decided that '=' would be semantically more appropriate than '=='. But I'm sticking with the implication arrow.) is the name: Pursuit of Hoppiness. This is, in fact, an imperial red ale, not an imperial IPA. I thought that was a strange name for a red ale. After pulling off the silly color-coordinated foil cap, I was greeted with a blank gold cap. Bummer.

First, let me say this beer is not very good. This basically is a Killians at imperial strength. My initial sniff was a pretty off-putting coppery (as in metallic) smell, the kind you get on your hands after handling a lot of loose change, plus an intermittent fishy smell. So we're off to a terrible start. Fantastic. The taste is flat malty and metallic. Very rarely do I say this about a beer (Denogginizer), but fuck this shit. Maybe a bad bottle, but seriously, this thing is really terrible. This is should probably be renamed something like Pursuit of Sadness. Or Boner-killer. It is that terrible.

At 8.5%ABV and $8 for the bomber, it's only on par for QPR. The upshot is that the beer after this is probably going to taste great.

• Appearance: Standard red ale; frothy head with some awkward off-on curtains.
• Smell: Metallic and fishy. Yuck.
• Taste: Very 1-D malty but not really on the level of an imperial. Tinny taste, like a skunky can.
• Mouthfeel: Viscosity on par for an imperial, standard weight. Carbing is not unusually low, but I'm annoyed enough with this beer to hold it against it.
• Drinkability and Overall: DO NOT WANT. There are much better tasting red ales and at this price point. Trying this only makes me want to make sure I pick up some Rogue Santa's Little Helper this year.

Angels Creek Syrah 2008.

I accidentally picked up a syrah instead of a PS a while ago. So here it is. From Lodi 2008, I think it should be pretty good. Extra jammy, strawberry, blueberry. Very tender and luscious. Tannins are relaxed but still around. Not as bold as a big BBQ zin.

Angels Creek Petite Sirah 2008.

I was uber-stoked to try this PS because it was from Lodi. Off the P&P: Nose is strong and a bit hot. Initial taste is super jammy and rich with black and blue berries, before cooling off into a grape jelly, and then more blueberry and strawberry. Tannins seemed weak on the first sip, and I felt I had to squeeze them out of there. Once I did, the astringency stuck around. Strong leather more than anything woody. Finish is a little stale. We'll see how it is after some exposure.

Main & Geary Petite Sirah 2008.

A BevMo sale bottle. Off the P&P: Initial nose was sweet and jammy with blackberry. Initial taste was rather tart though. Tannins around the edges, a little tight there but the rest is like a half deflated gumball. I can't decide if this is flabby or just needs some time.

Francis Coppola Plum Label Petite Sirah 2008.

After much hype, I have finally decided to try a Coppola wine: PS, naturally, and of course, on sale. P&P tasting: A bit spicy up front, peppery, but not a lot else. Maybe some earthy woodiness bordering on gritty. Maybe like a decomposing log. Classy. No legs to speak of. Tannins are lying pretty low until the end. A little oily. Currently: not impressed.

Le Baron Ranch School Car Petite Sirah 2009.

Pop and pour impressions. Immediate nose is crushed blueberries and blackberries and rich, earthy mud. Full-bodied in the mouth, initially a touch of tartness but the tannins unwind quickly into a luscious velvet rug. Pleasant astringency. For 2009, it is pretty decent already. Picking up on some strawberry; oak, as well, if you let it linger. Fairly round up front, almost a bit mushy but firms up well enough. Looking for a bit more intense flavor though. We'll see how it develops after some air.

Hidden Cellars Petite Sirah 2006.

Another sale item from BevMo. Pop and pour tasting: Immediate jammy nose with a bit of alcohol heat on the tail. Tannins are very mellow, round and relaxed. The puckering is a little on the weaker end but it's also not flabby. Note that this is 3 years older than the Vigilance PS I recently had. Very juicy blackberry with some toasted oak around the edges. I'm having this glass with a spicy red lentil soup with beef, so it's assertive enough as long as there's not too much pepper sauce added. I think it'd taste better with a grilled steak, but lots of things do.

Vigilance Petite Sirah 2009.

Picked a few wines the other week from BevMo. It's a bit weird to think that I have not drank any wine this summer, despite being in the most well-known wine producing state. Then again, this is also craft brew country for me. So cheers.

Sourced from Red Hills, Lake County. Tasting notes on the bottle: 25.0 and 26.5 degrees Brix, French and American oak for 18 months; "Well balanced wine. Notes of Blueberry, Blackberry, and creamy vanilla." I am getting primarily blueberry but the tannins are super astringent on this one. Extremely tight off the pop and pour. I'll only have a glass or two tonight and see how it does with some breathing time tomorrow.

After a day of exposure, the tannins have unwound a lot, making it finally drinkable. The typical velvet is present. Berry flavors are all accounted for, though a bit flat. Grape jam, even more blueberry, with barely a blackberry tart. Nothing offensive but nothing to write home about. Of the $10-12 class PSes I've had, this is solidly in there. I should probably try harder on these reviews too.

Earthquake Petite Sirah.

A little funky straight out of the bottle. After about an hour, it loosens up, tannins turn into crushed velvet, ultra-jammy, full and inky body. Strawberry, blueberry nose; a bit of burn oak on the palate at finish.

A drinkable and drinkable-now PS with an approachable astringent-ness. Probably the best out of that pack of PSes I got a while back.

Great Lakes Nosferatu.

A rich, malty, hop vehicle. The rep at the store called it a red ale but with more hops. It's a rich red, fine head, malty body loaded with hops. Heavy lacing all the way down. I like it. Not nearly as sessionable as an IPA, but a nice, heavier brew for a slower drinking, cold winter night.

Also, there's no good definition of a stock ale. BA redirects to old ales, and other stock ales get reclassified as American IPAs. Nosterfatu is classed as an American strong ale, also a super-ambiguous style. Someone said the brewer marks it as an imperial red. In any case, it's pretty good.

Rogue Dry Hopped St. Rogue Red Ale.

I am not normally a fan of red ales. (Though I will drink Killian's on the cheap with Taco Tuesdays, and I do like Rogue Santa's Private Reserve.) This caught my eye because it said "dry hopped". Also, it was on sale.

Dried blood-red color, uneven head which fades but still caps for the most part. Pleasant hop aroma, a bit roasted smell. Taste seemed very woody to me. Combined with the incredible flatness, I did not care for it much. I was kind of hoping it'd be good so I could grab a bunch on sale. But, alas, it was not meant to be.

Clayhouse Petite Sirah 2006.

Been a long time since I last opened a bottle of wine. Not very tannic. A little sweeter than I would expect. So these days, I wonder if this is where PSes are supposed to be in their funk. It's a smooth drinker, but I didn't feel there was a lot to pick out, maybe some leather. It's not as in-your-face as I like. But I've been disappointed in my PSes lately, for some reason. Maybe because I'm really craving cab?

Woot Cellars Emergency Holiday Provisions.

Finally got around to making note of this a year later. A super Tuscan blend, I think it makes a nice table wine, but with my experience of Italian wines, it's pretty thin.

Windmill Petite Sirah.

Juicy. Nice tannin tart, but still pretty mellow. Not super inky, but characteristically rich. Pretty good for a reasonable price.

Rogue Santa's Private Reserve Ale.

I've never been a huge fan of red ales. It's not that I don't like them, but if I had to pick a single style to drink for the rest of my life, it wouldn't be it. I enjoy Killian's every now and then (cheap beer with Taco Tuesdays), but I don't think I've ever gone out and bought it.

Naturally, I'm a sucker for Rogue, even though their beers seem to be rather hit or miss, so I picked up their winter seasonal. Super deep red color, nice, thick head. Mildly bitter, but it didn't make sense to me without a balancing sweetness. Fairly unassuming, it'd make a good session beer, even at 6%ABV. Pretty light bodied. I didn't pick up the floral in the same strength as other people. A lot of people on BA are very enthusiastic about it and commented on the hops being strong but not overwhelming. Perhaps I'm just too hopped up to appreciate it at the same level.

CB Chistmas Ale.

I was originally gonig to pick up a 19th Hole if they had it. Which they did. But then I saw this. And I'm a sucker for new beers.

I found it to be quite spicy and refreshing, hearty even. It always nice when a cold brew can pull off a warm feeling. Against mulled wine and egg nog, I think it'd find good company.