Yet another NYC Offie - not really

You have probably guessed by now that my wife does not really like hanging out in pubs while I try every imaginable beer that is on offer. In these circumstances, off licences and supermarkets are a god (I have left god in lower case on purpose, to imply it was noun would mean that I am 'one' of them) send. In this case it was a supermarket and I made three purchases.

1. Smuttynose IPA (5.6% abv) - pretty boring text on the label, but a picture of old people on the front inspired me to purchase this product. This was one of the better beers I had the pleasure of experiencing while in NYC. It's good in the fact that you can taste that the beer is more complex than just pinecones and is actually balanced by a nice maltly beer. This beer actually has some British pedigree and was awarded a gold medal as the best American beer at the GBBF in 2004. Anyhow while drinking this I had some corn chips (Tortilla chips if you swing that way) and watched some more trashy US television. The Burger King guy is pretty scary. He has a constant shit eating grin and a massive head. I don't now why he likes square butts though?

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2. Stone IPA (6.9% abv) - yet another quality beer with some semblance of balance. Having not tried arrogant bastard or ruination before, but hearing all the rumours I prepared for an onslaught of the dreaded pinecone flavour of c-hops. To my surprise it was not as aggressive as I thought it would be and was actually really good. The beer is best described as Light-medium malt character with a heavy dose of hops! This beer has balanced but still abundant hop aroma and crisp hop flavor. I watched some reality TV with this one - who is Kim Kardashian and why is she famous? She has a nice rack though, pity its counter-balanced by her ass.

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3. Sierra Nevada Torpedo (7.2% abv) - Is the 'Extra IPA' offering from Sierra Nevada and tastes like a beefed up SNPA. In reality its probably not all that different and certainly retains that house astringency that I find all Sierra Nevada beers tend to have. It was good though and I am glad I tried it, but I probably wouldn't bother again. While I pay full respect to the contribution that Sierra Nevada has made to the US craft brewing scene, I tend to find there beers a little bit safe/conservative when comparing them to some of the beers coming out of the newer/smaller breweries. I say this having spent only a few days in the US, but seeing this on the shelves at my local Tesco would still rock.

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Anyhow I will leave you for today with a picture of a brewery draymen's truck from Yuengling brewing. Which is America's oldest Brewery. I didn't find any of their beers in my travels, but hopefully will track some down in the near future.
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