beer: wagner valley sled dog doppelbock


Today’s guest post is by my good friend and homebrewer, Erin Mulrooney.

While wine touring last fall in the Finger Lakes of upstate New York, one of the stops brought me to Wagner Vineyards, which also has its own brewing company. I first tried Sled Dog in their tasting room, and enjoyed it so much that I bought a few six packs to bring home with me.

Sled Dog pours a medium caramel color, and is extremely effervescent with fairly large bubbles and a small head that dissipates quickly. The aroma from this beer contains rich notes of caramel, and almost no bitterness.

Doppelbocks are known for being extremely malty and having a fairly high ABV, and Sled Dog does not disappoint. Weighing in at 8.5%, I was surprised at how smoothly this beer drinks, with very little alcohol taste. When I initially tried this beer, I was with my grandfather (who is not a big beer drinker), and even he commented on the smoothness. In addition to the ever-present caramel, you also get a pretty big dose of molasses in the flavor. With more sips, I started to notice the sticky quality that such a malty beer like this has – it actually stayed on my palate after finishing the beer. Despite the initial effervescence, it is almost nonexistent throughout the drinking of this beer.

Sled Dog is an enjoyable beer, especially if Doppelbock is a new style for you. It isn’t the kind of beer that you’d want to have a few of in one evening, mostly due to the stickiness, but it does make for a good pint on a cold night. If you ever find yourself in the Finger Lakes, I’d recommend a stop at Wagner to sample the other beers they produce in addition to Sled Dog.

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beer: charleville hoptimistic ipa


Today I finally open my blog up for a guest post. Friend and fellow blogger Ryan Hudak of In Search of Beer offered to write a beer post for me.

Being that Brian’s blog here has “beer” in the title but not really in the posts anymore, I thought I would help out and donate a little beeriness (more of which can be found on my blog, In Search of Beer). I received this particular beer, from Charleville Vineyard and Microbrewery in Missouri, in a beer exchange with a fellow blogger. I wanted something I wouldn’t be able to get at home, and this certainly fit the bill.

The beer poured dark orange with a thick, foamy yellowish head. It had a very soothing, floral, and piney hop smell that didn’t hint at much bitterness.

But, the bitterness was certainly there, and almost overpoweringly so. The first few sips were surprising, as the smell didn’t hint at this much bitterness. Underneath, though was a strong citrus flavor, but also a slight soapy flavor.

The beer would have benefitted from more balance. There was a subtle maltiness that could have been stronger to help with the bitterness of the hops. More balance would’ve elevated this IPA from good to great. If I ever go to St. Louis, I would order this again if there was nothing else, but I wouldn’t go out of my way to find it.

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