Beer Review: Real Ale – Sisyphus 2008
May0
Oh how I love a good Barleywine!
Amount of brew in bottle: 12 fluid ounces
ABV: ~10%
Type of brew: Barley Wine
Price: ~$5
Recently me and the wifey migrated down to Texas. We were a bit worried about the beer situation in Texas since it is known for not having that great of beer. Even though the beer situation isn’t as good as Seattle we do not have to resort to drinking Budweiser. Although it would be nice to have a few good brewpubs at least it will cut down on our expenses 
. Anyways, today I am reviewing a Barleywine style ale from Real Ale Brewing company based out of Blanco, Texas. These guys know how to brew beer! All of the beers I have had from them have been pretty good. This barleywine isn’t as sweet as many of the barleywines I have had but on a hot day that is a good thing! It has a smooth caramel color and smells very slightly of hops. When you take a drink of the beer it is a little thicker than a normal beer (go figure) and has an initial sweet taste followed by a hint of bitterness.
Overall this beer is a very approachable barleywine. I am always hesitant to recommend barleywines to people but this is one I would for sure. Many barleywines are kind of like IPAs either you like them or you don’t but I feel this one is very approachable. So, if you are ever in Texas or see this one sitting on a shelf make sure to pick up a bottle and give it a try.
The good: a very easy drinking barleywine
The bad: Limited supplies
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Beer Review: Reissdorf Kolsch
May0
It's beer... It's light..
Type of beer: Kolsch
Cost: $4.99
ABV: Not listed on the bottle (but didn’t feel that high)
Amount: 500mL (16.9 fl oz)
This beer was actually originally purchased as a “possibility” for our toasting beer at the wedding. We have some beautiful pilsner glasses that were actually given to us as a house warming gift when we bought our house in 2007. These glasses haven’t actually been used yet… So when we decided to get married, we thought that this would be a great time to break out the glasses. If only we could figure out a cool beer to pour into said beautiful glasses.
Hence, the purchase of this beer.
I will be honest, Mike and I don’t usually “do” light beers. Porter and stouts? Sure! Pilsners and lagers? …
This was a tough beer for me to want to purchase.
Initially, I served it a little too cold. It had that gross light beer taste that I usually try and avoid. I liken the “gross beer” taste to that of Bud Light, or something like that. However, as it warmed up, I was pleasantly surprised. The beer lost that “gross taste” and turned into something that I wouldn’t mind drinking if temperatures in Seattle ever got above 90 degrees. It was light and crisp without any kind of aftertaste (again, only after it warmed up a bit).
I drank this beer while eating some delicious steak and spinach with mushrooms. It balanced the heaviness of the steak and cream in the spinach.
Who would have thought that I would pay attention to that?
The verdict… In regards to using this beer as a wedding beer… It just won’t happen. It isn’t that this beer is a bad choice, I am just not a light beer kind of gal. Most likely, we will end up with the delicious pumpkin porter.
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Overall (when warmed up):