When I was at the Beach Chalet Brewery and Restaurant, in San Francisco, recently, I tried not only the Fleishhacker Stout but also the Pumpkin Spice Ale. Unfortunately, I was unable to find very much information about this beer so this review will be a little shorter than my standard reviews.
Where I Found It. I had this beer at the Beach Chalet Brewery and Restaurant in San Francisco, CA.
Serving Type. When I sampled this brew, it it was served from the tap into a pint glass.
Appearance. The head is a light, off-white, tan color but does not last very long. The color of this Pumpkin Spice Ale is a nice bright orange color that is complementary to the fact that this is a pumpkin ale. This beer is crystal clear.
Smell. The aroma of this Pumpkin Spice Ale is slightly sweet, malty, and mild. The bouquet has a just a hint of pumpkin pie spices such as nutmeg, cloves, and a dash of cinnamon. There is another sweetness present like that of concord grapes but in a good way as if it will be refreshing. I also noticed the grape-juice-like scent in the Beach Chalet stout, which makes me wonder what is causing that scent.
Taste. The pumpkin pie flavor is very subtle and is by no means in your face. There are flavors of a dash of nutmeg and a hint of cinnamon alongside some cloves. I also experienced a vanilla flavor but not as strong as a cream soda. There is definitely malt sweetness present and the balance is in favor of the malt over the hops. After a while, the slight vanilla flavor takes on a light caramel flavor.
Mouthfeel. The mouthfeel is smooth with a slightly spicy aftertaste. This pumpkin ale is a light to medium bodied ale. It is not too watery and not too thick.
Drinkability. This is a wonderful beer to try especially if you like a pumpkin ale that is more subtle than in your face. Personally, I prefer to have the pumpkin spice flavors to be pronounced. It is quite possible, however, that this batch has mellowed over time.
Rating. My ratings below are on a five point scale with five being the best score. The overall rating is calculated exactly the same way as Beer Advocate.
Appearance (20%): 4.0
Smell (20%): 3.5
Taste (40%): 3.5
Mouthfeel (10%): 3.5
Drinkability (10%): 3.0
Overall: 3.55
Information
Alcohol by volume: unknown, I’ll guess 5.6% like most of their other beers
The Beach Chalet Brewery & Restaurant is located in San Francisco “where the Park meets the Pacific,” on the edge of Golden Gate Park across the street from the beach. It is a great location to have a locally brewed beer. I’m not sure what stores carry Beach Chalet beers but the brewery/restaurant has a long list of styles to choose from on their website and on their leaflets. They brew everything from stout to hefeweizen and they even have an altbier.
The Beach Chalet describes Fleishhacker Stout as follows:
Medium-boded stout with chocolate notes & a rich, smooth finish.
This description, however, does not explain what Fleishhacker means. It turns out that Fleishhacker refers to the Fleishhacker Pool, which was the largest swimming pool in the United States located in San Francisco, CA near the zoo. With this knowledge, the beer label, which depicts a woman diving into a pool, makes more sense.
Where I Found It. I had this beer at the Beach Chalet Brewery and Restaurant in San Francisco, CA.
Serving Type. When I sampled this brew, it it was served from the tap into a pint glass.
Appearance. The head has a cappuccino color. Although the head was nice and foamy coming out of the tap, it did not last long. This might have been because the bartender seemed a little impatient with the head settling and overfilled the glass several times. Flieshhacker Stout has a black opaque color that you would expect from a stout.
Smell. The aroma of this stout is of very dark roasted malts and chocolate. The hop bouquet is very slight and has a hint of citrus and a more faint hint of concord grape juice.
Taste. Fleishhacker Stout has a nice flavor of toasty, dark roast coffee. There is also a noticeable bitterness, which was more than I expected. The bitterness, however, is balanced well against a pleasant malty sweetness. The flavor also has a hint of chocolate.
Mouthfeel. As described by the brewery, this is a medium bodied beer and I personally prefer a stout that has a fuller and creamier body. In fact, I think the mouthfeel is a bit watery. The aftertaste has a hop bitterness that lingers on back sides of the tongue. Finally, there is a slight chalky texture to this beer, which I also do not like.
Drinkability. Fleishhacker Stout is a smooth beer that can be consumed all year round. It does not, however, give a warming feeling that a winter warmer style beer does and that’s okay.
Rating. My ratings below are on a five point scale with five being the best score. The overall rating is calculated exactly the same way as Beer Advocate.
Snow Cap Ale is winter seasonal beer available from October to January from Pyramid Breweries, which is located in 5 locations on the West Coast. Both the brewer, Pyramid, and Beer Advocate list the style of this beer as a winter warmer. Pyramid goes on to say that this beer is crafted in the British tradition:
A rich, full-bodied winter warmer crafted in the British tradition of holiday beers. This deep mahogany colored brew balances complex fruit flavors with a refreshingly smooth texture, making Snow Cap a highly drinkable and desirable cold weather companion.
I heartily agree with the assessment that Snow Cap Ale is a great cold weather brew. This beer contains a hefty 7.0% alcohol and when you drink this beer you know, from both the taste and the affects, that it is strong.
Pyramid should be commended for listing so much detail about Snow Cap and their other beers on their website. If you’re a home brewer, you can use some of these details to approximate a clone recipe or at the very least use it for inspiration. For instance, this beer contains the following malts: 2-Row Barley, Caramel 80L , and Chocolate Malt. And the following hops: Nugget, Willamette, East Kent Goldings. Pyramid lists Snow Cap as having a gravity of 17.3 degrees Plato or about 1.071 specific gravity. With 7.0% alcohol by volume, the final gravity should be about 1.018 specific gravity.
Where I Found It. I picked up a 12oz bottle 6-pack at a Beverages and More in the San Francisco Bay Area.
Serving Type. When I sampled this brew, it it was served from a 12oz bottle into a pint glass.
Appearance. The head had a nice cappuccino color but the head did not last too long. The color of the Snow Cap Ale is a very dark amber or a mahogany wood finish. Although mostly opaque due to the color, the beer was clear and not cloudy.
Smell. The aroma had an earthy smell with an essence of roasted chestnuts, which, if you have not had them, are sweet, roasty, and starchy. I also sensed a hint of banana and cloves and this makes me very curious about the yeast that was used. The hop bouquet was slightly spicy and smelled like an evergreen tree, possibly a douglas fir. I’m not certain right now which of the 3 hops would contribute to that type of bouquet.
Taste. When I tasted Snow Cap Ale, it reminded me of a beer from New Belgium Brewing, either 1559 or 2-Below. It had a roasty-burnt taste but not a bad burnt taste maybe like flambé. There was also a flavor of cloves. This is a 7.0% alcohol beer and I tasted the alcohol astringency in the beer. The hop bitterness was well balanced and not overhelming at all.
Mouthfeel. Snow Cap Ale felt like a full-bodied beer with an appropriate amount of carbonation. The aftertaste had a lingering bitterness.
Drinkability. This beer was surpisingly smooth and drinkable beer especially in colder weather. Snow Cap Ale, however, is not a session beer. It is strong and one is enough. Despite the fact that I prefer other winter seasonals, this is a top notch winter warmer that I would drink again.
Rating. My ratings below are on a five point scale with five being the best score. The overall rating is calculated exactly the same way as Beer Advocate.
Appearance (20%): 4.0
Smell (20%): 3.5
Taste (40%): 3.5
Mouthfeel (10%): 3.5
Drinkability (10%): 3.5
Overall: 3.6
What Others Thought
It is always more enjoyable to share a beer with friends and family. As part of this blog I plan on not only reviewing the beer myself but also gathering feedback from others. Below is what Liz, Erin, and Patrick thought about Snow Cap Ale.
Liz
Appearance. Coffee dark. Frothy head.
Smell. Coffee grounds.
Taste. Rich, smooth, roasty, sweet.
Mouthfeel. Creamy.
Drinkability. Yes.
Erin
Appearance. Dark brown, clear, amber. 5.0
Smell. Coffee, chocolate, hops, and wood. 4.5
Taste. Coffee, choclate, hops, woody but not as strong a sandalwood, cream soda. 4.0
Mouthfeel. Smooth. 4.0
Drinkability. Very good and smooth but not a strong finish. 3.5
Patrick
Appearance. Very dark brown, coffee color. Samll, tight head. 4.0
Smell. Alcohol, banana, cherry. 3.0
Taste. Sweet, no hoppiness, strong. 3.5
Mouthfeel. Astringent with tight bubbles and a bitter finish. 4.0
Drinkability. Drinkable. Not a session beer. Goes down easy. 3.0
Caption from the Bottle
The following caption is found on the neck of the bottle:
It’s not winter without it. Snow Cap is a complex ale that is mahogany in color and deliciously smooth. Drink it while you can because when the snow’s gone so’t the Snow Cap.
Information
Alcohol content: 7.0% alcohol by volume
Malts: 2-Row Barley, Caramel 80L, Chocolate Malt
Hops: Nugget, Willamette, East Kent Goldings
Gravity: 1.071 specific gravity or 17.2 degree Plato
Since I’m frequently gathering feedback from friends about the beer that I am reviewing on this website, I wanted to gather the feedback in a more organized manner. I also wanted an simple format to review beer myself without having to carry around a small notepad or notebook. I recalled that I have several blank 3″ x 5″ notecards laying around and figured that would be a manageable size for my purposes.
The result is the attached PDF file. I printed out a few of these, printing on both sides of the notecard, before sharing some Pyramid Snow Cap with some friends. The cards worked out great. I know exactly who wrote what and when and I can quickly include their feedback into my next post. Now I plan on using these whenever I think or know I will be reviewing beer.
Print in portrait mode and insert the note cards in a portrait orientation
Do a test run of double sided printing on one card before doing several
Print on side 1 first
Reload the notecard and print on side 2 second
For my inkjet printer I do this by placing the printed side up with the top of the card going into the printer first. This should very likely be the same for most inkjets.
Gouden Carolus Noël is a winter seasonal ale from Anker brewery, Brouwerij Het Anker, in Belgium. This beer is classified as a Belgian dark strong ale and it certainly fits the bill weighing in at 10.5% abv. According the the brewer’s website, this beer contains three different types of hops, all Belgian, and six different herbs that are added at different stages of brewing.
For my first beer review I’ve selected a winter seasonal ale, Jubelale. Jubelale is a winter warmer style beer that is available from October to December from Deschutes Brewery out of Bend, Oregon. It comes in artistically styled packaging, which, according to Deschutes, is different every year. Even though I shouldn’t chose a beer by the label, the packaging helped influence me to try it out. Continue reading →
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