Explorations in beer
To ease the way into the depths of December, I ordered Mikkeller’s 24-entry Julepakkekalender, which provides a beer a day.
The kalender itself is an unassuming cardboardbox, with the individual bottles separated by dividers and protected by styrofoamy bits.
The first two entries were a can and a bottle, and they were of wildly differing genres, so I have high hopes for a crafty adventure that takes us the first weeks of the month.
FI: Paras joulukalenteri sitten ekan luokan.
On the domestic side, the beer of the month-honors fall on a good beer with a silly name. Stallhagen has been quite uneven, but their Brwedolf is a hoppy lager that seems eminently suited for the fish table of the impending Christmas dinner.
FI: Synkkä suosikkilinja katkeaa iloisen punanenäiseen kotimaiseen.
Finnish: Hiisi‘s Humulus Lupus is a repeat offender, I’ve always liked the powerful double IPA, and this batch was no exception. Combining darkness and mighty multi-hopping in one of the finest examples of the genre produced domestically. This used to be only sporadically available, but seems to be a feature in at least a couple of shops downtown. World would be a better place if Iku-Turso, their take on imperial stout, would be something more than a rare guest.
Overall: I accidentally bought two bottles of Mikkeller‘s Beer Geek Dessert. This was not an accident, this was serendipity, as the imperial stout turned out to be an excellent addition to the Danish brewer’s portfolio. The oatmeal stout is sweet, but the sugar never feels artificial – the additional flavours of vanilla and chocolate are subtle and genuine. This would definitely be a good companion to a mild dessert such as crème brûlée – will definitely give the second bottle a shot in the near future.
FI: Tumma linja jatkuu kahden vahvasti erilaisen oluen merkeissä: toinen vahvasti humaloitu, toinen vaniljaisen makea.
But sadly none was available, neither stocked Tasty Pumpkin Maku Brewing’s collaboration with Hopping Brewesters.
According to the barkeep in the latter “pumpkin is too alien a taste for finns”. I’m not going to argue with that statement, but considering the unstoppable force that Halloween has arrived in Finland, I definitely would have expected the bars to cover their sectors.
FI: En päässytkään rankaisemaan itseäni vuotuisella kupritsaoluen maistolla.
Didn’t expect anything beer-related in Pasila, but Estonian Muddis Brewery served three beers on their stand.
Their golden ale was a decent, but very much basic example of the genre, but the IPA and Saison fared better. The IPA was low in bitterness, but had decent hopping nonetheless, and the saison benefited from a higer than usual ABV.
The beers were served in about a deciliter glass, and both the ale and the saison do merit further investigation. Hadn’t encountered the brewery previously, but according to the representatives the beers should be “easily available” south of the bay.
And yeah, I’m now 0-for-3 in the beer expo, a sad state of affairs that needs to be taken care of with better planning next year.
FI: Vallan OK uusi virolaispanimo, maistiaiset Viinimessuilla säälittävän pieniä, joten pitää tutustua uudemman kerran.
FI: Hanat auki!
Overall: I had no expectations regarding Nøgne Ø’s Sunturnbrew while browsing the chalkboard at Ølhus København, apart from the eyebrow-raising voltage, there was little to stand out. How wrong I was, this is easily one of the greatest beers sampled in the whole year. A heavily smoked yet sweet rauchbier, whose high ABV reveals serious barley wine-properties. The taste is complex and varies as the liquid warms, with new flavours subduing the preceding.
FI: Kaksi savuista olutta. Toinen loistokas ja toinenkin niin hyvä, että uusintaottelu on tarpeen.
However, the newer installment acquits itself better – it boasts a definite sour undertone to the juiciness. It doesn’t reach the lofty heights of Päivi or Konnichiwa Kitsune (which, to be fair, do benefit from the heftier ABV, Holy Moose is a tweener-beer).
A solid 3.5, a beer I wouldn’t mind having again (in optimal conditions: the Moose, he doesn’t like getting warm), but no hurry to repeat the experience.
FI: Hapokasta mehua. Ei tajunnanräjäyttävä, mutta sangen jees kuitenkin.
Patient Zero is Left Hand Brewing Company‘s Twin Sisters Double IPA.
Bought a bottle in Stockholm back in July and figured it’s time to sample the taste before the hops start expiring.
Visually the beer is coppery clear, with a nice thickish head. Despite the strong head, the carbonation is low, Twin Sisters is not a fizzy beer by any means.
The taste is less of an IPA than I expected, the hops (rated high at 77 IBU) are not overwhelming at all, but stealthily subdued. The taste is complex and has pine, malts and some caramelized sugar in it. None of the elements treads on the others, and the overall taste is balanced and pleasant. The close-to-ten ABV is not an issue, the taste of alcohol never reaches out.
This was my first Left Hand beer, picked up a Smoke Jumper alongside this one, and am definitely looking forward to trying it out as well.
I’ve never gotten used to the multi-variable ratings, a single number’s been good enough thus far. So, without any further ado, the rating: 4.5 stars, a hearty recommendation and a promise to buy a second bottle given the chance.
FI: Kaksossiskoissa oli vähemmän humalaa kuin etiketti lupaili, mutta syyskuun oluiden kiistatonta kärkeä tämä on.
This obviously means that a selection of seasonally appropriate beers lands in the shelves for a month or two.
The selection is pretty much the same, year on year. After all, there’s only so much variety that can be packed into the beer whose main attraction is quaffability from a heavy maß. This year’s crop packs two new arrivals: Hacker-Pschorr’s Märzen and Svaneke’s Oktoberfest.
I’ve never been to the festival. For some reason during the Nokia Siemens Networks days the joint sessions hosted in Bavaria were always packed full. Even if there’s not that much beer-wise but volume, the massive festival grounds and crowds would have been interesting to see.
FI: Oktoberfest ei yllätä. Valikoimaltaankaan.
Foreign: Despite the sudden surge of a bottom-fermented beer in the local category, Põhjala’s Virmalised kept up the topside alternative. Virmalised was my first encounter with the brewery, and if their output remains at this high level, I have high expectations for later rounds. Virmalised is a fresh and fruity beer (is there an echo here), which was just the thing to soothe the tongue in the warmest days early in the month.
FI: Samanlaiset keskenään, raikkaat ja hedelmäiset.
Herkkujen Suomi, the annual end-of-the-summer occasion of hawking domestic food has recently attached a conspicuous beer-appendix to itself.
Sadly the show itself has gone downhill, as the small producers get crowded out by food stalls. This year big chunks of the nation went unrepresented. The gravest loss was Kainuu, as the mighty tar bread produced by Pekka Heikkinen’s bakery was shockingly not available. Also missing in action: rönttöset, proper rieska and non-industrial cinnamon buns.
Sampled a pair of beers over a warm Thursday lunch alongside pulled pork burgers (which seems to be the sushi of the latter half of decade, so rapid has its ascent in popularity been). Pyynikki’s Vanilla Stout was the better of the two, even if its hefty dark warmth was quite out of place on a sunny day. Laitila’s Wasaborg, a smoked wheat beer, was more appropriate but as the common complaint goes “not smoky enough”. The former reinvigorated my interest in Papabeers (which I’d happily forgotten about) and I’ll keep an eye out for the latter as well for a more autumny second encounter.
FI: Makujen Suomi heikkenee vuosi vuodelta kun muikkukauppiaat vievät tilan. Lounasoluet turhan tummia hienoon myöhäiskesän päivään.
Siperia is a fine beer indeed. Sadly its availability in Alko was restricted to a couple of days when it was available in the annual Christmas beers-campaign a few years back. But fortunately it is steadily available in many of the downtown bars, especially conveniently in Bruuveri – almost next door to the bus heading homewards out west.
While the ultimate #1 is an appropriate choice, some of the lesser awards are questionable: Karjala III is far from being the third best lager and whoever got the idea of mixing stouts and ales in the same category deserves a pint of microwave-warmed Coors Light as a just reward.
FI: Siperia takaisin, tuoppi kerrallaan. Kun ei enää pullossa saa.
Beers of the World is a new, impressively named Finnish company with a bright new idea. They sell the rights to purchase beers from Alko’s “by special order only” -selection.
The site didn’t have the world’s greatest start as the first few days of orders were tossed into /dev/null by an over-eager spam assassin.
Took the shop out for a spin and ordered EVERY beer that they had. Which obviously sounds way more imposing than what the truth is: I ordered three beers.
Three Thornbridge beers, one of which I had had before.
The shop took its time fulfilling the order, and the delivery was far from optimized – the sales in Arkadia’s shop ground to a halt as the cashier was forced to go deep into the vaults to locate the wares.
Happily enough, all three were indeed found.
Despite the somewhat rusty cogs and unexpected delays, the shopping experience was a pleasant one, and I definitely look forward to sampling the expanding selection in the future.
FI: Vähän tökki, mutta hyvin kauppa kävi. Laajempaa valikoimaa vaan!
Had a very pleasant dinner in Muru. This being a hot day, I wasn’t in the mood for wine at all, and especially the main course, roasted whitefish, just screamed for a good pils as accompaniment. And that’s what they had. And that’s all they had. Despite a wine list longer than a basketballer’s arm, Muru delivers a grand total of one beer. Fortunately the choice is decent. Kukko Pils works wonders with many dishes, but it’s far from omnipotent. Being able to get a hefty brown ale for the veal tartare appetizer and an imperial stout for the chocolate fondant would have made a great meal even better. Though a well-chilled Moscata was quite an adequate replacement for the latter as a companion for the dessert.
Clearly, the beer quota was far from filled out, and we took a long detour home. A detour that crossed no less than three of the craft beer invasion-heralding bar in southern Helsinki.
Brewdog was its trusty self, had my first encounter with Pōhjala (as far as I can recall), the very fruity and hoppy IPA was the beginning of a beautiful friendship.
Tommyknocker was smaller than I expected, but had an impressive fridge and a wide set of taps. Unfortunately the beer we’d looked up as being available there (Wasteland: Oasis) had ran dry, but the first samplings of the housewares were not bad either.
Finished the evening at Bier-bier on Erottaja. In comparison to the previous it was a far roomier affair, and the beer selection was not as US-centric.
Next up: Stadin Panimo in Suvilahti.
FI: Vallan hyviä pienpanimo-olueen keskittyneitä baareja parin korttelin säteellä. Lähempänä asuminen voisi johtaa jumitteluun.
brewnardo 