Author: brewnardo

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Accidental tap takeover participation

De Molen logo
De Molen logo
Had a very very late lunch downtown (following a surprisingly long meeting).

Opted to try out Sori Taproom again, even though the official lunch hour was way past. Turned out that today was a special day indeed, with a heavily curtailed menu. Fortunately burgers were on (though fries were not). This arrangement was on account of the first Brewer’s Dinner in the evening, with an aligned tap takeover by Brouwerij de Molen.

Sampled two &-beers.

Heksen & Trollen was a very good companion to the burger, a crisp and even bitterish saison.

Bommen & Granaten, on the other hand, was a dessert and my first barley wine off a tap in a long long while. Very plummy, but only moderately sweet – with the alcohol conveniently hidden by the stony fruits, malts and hopping.

FI: Vahinko-osallistuminen hananvaltaukseen jäi kahteen maistettuun olueen. Molemmat hyviä, mutteivät mitenkään maailmaa mullistavia.

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Tallinn, 2017 vintage

Helsinki Terminal 2
Helsinki Terminal 2
Took advantage of a mid-week vacation day and visited Tallinn.

Took the new Tallink Megastar both ways. The ship is indeed new and large. And while the shop is the largest on-ship shop I’ve seen, the beer selection is quite limited. Settled on picking up two fill-it-yourself -sixpacks on the way back. An unexpected surprise was the existence of not only one but two ship-specific beers (one from Pühaste, the other from Suomenlinna).

The new marketplace (Balti Jaama Turg) behind the railway station contained plenty of interesting shops, and a central brewpub that was just opening up (either for the day, or in general).

Ate at von Krahl Aed, the food was very veggies-led and rather imaginatively put together. And the restaurant, too, had a house-branded beer (brewed by Lehe).

Uba ja Humal had plenty of goods, but as noted in earlier postings, the amount of US imports has decreased significantly from the early days, and it seems that UK is being cut down as well (e.g. only half a dozen Brewdogs and a handful of Buxtons). Picked up a lot of Estonian beers, and avoided the temptation of Amagers (of which there was not much shortage).

One of the shops in the terminal had adopted to the era of craft beer by expanding far beyond the cheapest eurolagers.

FI: Vallan onnistunut pikareissu etelänaapuriin. Megastar kuljettaa, Uba ja Humal varustaa.

Shop in Terminal D in Tallinn
Shop in Terminal D in Tallinn
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Dog down?

Brewdog logo sketch
Brewdog logo sketch
Brewdog Turku seems to have disappeared, as it’s no longer listed on the brewery’s listing and the bar’s facebook page states that “suboptimal location” was the reason why the bar is looking for a new address.

Visited it last year, and I didn’t think the 250 odd meters from downtown were too much (the Helsinki location is far further from zero point than this), but maybe Turku is just built differently.

Anyway, this closure means that we’re back to a single Brewdog in Finland.

FI: Turun panokoira on poistunut keskuudestamme.

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Best Beers of May 2017

Berserk Llama Syndrome
Berserk Llama Syndrome
Another double punch entry of my favourite genre in May as well:

Amager’s Berserk Llama Syndrome was a serendipitous purchase at Brewdog. A boldly fruity IPA is exactly what is needed to end up in these articles, it seems. Have to look this up in Uba ja Humal, since they seem to stock a wide variety of Amager’s products. And sadly enough the titular disease is a real condition that affects farmed llamas.

Fat Lizard’s Track Day IPA is a bit lighter and mellower, but still packing a righteous dose of the hops. Tasted it in Lucky Bastard in Iso Omena, their burger was convincingly good and a great companion to the beer.

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Ohrana arrives

Ohrana logo
Ohrana logo
Ohrana, yet another brewery/restaurant-combo has landed in Helsinki.

Tasted a few of their products over a dinner in Passio (still good, but the dishes have seriously diminished in size), both APA and Vehnä were decent, yet traditional takes on their genres (the latter injects Mandarina hops into the mix, but it’s not a very tangible addition).

But I’ll reserved a full judgment until a proper visit – either the selection was really narrow in Passio or the waitress discouraged trying out the others.

FI: Ohrana on onneksi muutakin kuin salainen poliisi.

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Best Beers of April 2017

Rye Hammer
Rye Hammer
Rye Hammer continues Brewdog’s strongly hopped hammers-series. It’s drier and less tropical than the original Jack, but does hit like its namesake.

I liked the original Musta Munkki but its 2016 version is even fuller-bodied. The donuts used in the brewing remain absent in the taste.

FI: Ruisvasara osuu napakasti.

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Sori Taproom

Ikiiurso
Ikiiurso
Lucked out and got a table in Sori Taproom on a busy Saturday evening.

The restaurant (ex-Kipinä / Comic Sans Sushi / many others) was packed full of tables, but it did not feel awkwardly crowded.

The selection on tap isn’t fully restricted to house beers, but they do feature prominently.

Had a three course dinner, where both the appetizer (soft-shell crab) and main course (brisket & flank steak) were excellent, and the dessert (pie with ice cream) was by no means bad either. A big plus goes out to the unseasoned meat, there’s a sixpack of sauces provided with the meal so that every customer can try out which flavour works out the best with each dish.

The beers are served a multiple glass sizes, and I was glad that Lizard of Koz was served in a 22 cl one. This was a clear miss from Founders, with far too much juiciness (and even plain sugar) in the taste.

Finally got a chance to try out Ikii Urso, Hiisi’s big brother to a persistent gargantuan favorite of mine. Ikii Urso is a dense beer indeed, packed with taste and alcohol. Roasty and sweet, with both chocolate and caramel in the taste. Thick and oily mouthfeel cap the anti-refreshing experience.

Will be back.

FI: Sori Taproom on ensimmäinen todellinen olutravintola stadissa.

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Best beers of February 2017

Mosaiik
Mosaiik

The IPAs continue their march to victory, with Pühaste’s Mosaiik staking an oddly Viennese-tinted claim on the top position. The austrian bits are restricted to the malts, the hopping is tropical indeed.

In the finnish league Sori’s Sweet Mistress, in which chocolate and salty caramel balance each other out on a roasty baseline.

FI: Yllätyksetön kärkikaksikko: IPA ja imperial stout.

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Käsityöläisoluet 2017

Tracker page is up.

The selection seems moderately interesting, and far more multi-faceted than in the couple of previous years. Though the non-lambic fruit beers do arouse suspicion.

FI: Keskinkertaiselta vaikuttava kattaus, odotettavissa yllätyksiä molempiin suuntiin.

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Sank the Bismarck!

Sink the Bismarck
Sink the Bismarck
Tasted Brewdog’s Sink the Bismarck!.

A full two centiliters of the 41% ABV beer was enough to convince me that it’s not really a beer, and that there are better malt-based products punching in the same weight category.

The taste is obviously dominated by the high alcohol content, and sadly the bouquet is quite a bit nicer than the taste. Carbonation is nonexistent, and the burning mouthfeel similar to a cheap whiskey.

Clearly not my beer.

With the Bismarck down, the next ones to try out would be Tactical Nuclear Penguin and the infamous taxidermy-beer, End of History.

FI: Järisyttävän voltikas Bismarck upotettu, paloviinainen polte ei houkuttele uusintakierrokselle.

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Best Beers of January 2017

Yellow Belly
Yellow Belly
The fanciest packaged beer of the month gets the top honours. The ghostly paper wrapping of Buxton’s Yellow Belly hides a nutty, biscuity imperial stout that contains a hint of salty licorice in its aftertaste.

Domestic winner, Maistila’s Optimisti, is indeed an optimally implemented west coast pale ale with citric/tropical hopping that tickles just the correct tastebuds.

FI: Kummitusolut kärkeen.

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Tsarina Esra: 25 years till expiration

De Molen’s Tsarina Esra has a full quarter century before it’s termed no longer “best”.

And a tasty imperial stout it is, indeed.

Black but not roasty, and nutty rather than licorice-y. Very smooth taste, the hefty ABV remains well hidden in the full body. Low carbonation and a bit oily mouthfeel further distance Tsarina from being an easy beginners’ beer.

FI: Tsaaritar pysyy parhaana pitkään.

Long Expiration
Long Expiration