I’ve been drinking quite a bit of beer lately, which might explain why this post is 6 days late. The last few shifts, I’ve had a Mendocino Brewing Company beer. Tuesday I had their Black Hawk Stout. Thursday and Friday, their Eye of the Hawk ale. I’ve also been lucky to drink a Red Tail Ale and White Hawk IPA.
I am not an experienced reviewer, but it should be enough for me to say that I’ve had an Eye of the Hawk two days in a row, especially when you consider where I work and the immense selection available to me as an employee. It’s a fine ale that is well balanced between hops and malt. The Eye is a little stronger than you might expect at 8% but the flavor is smooth and the beer goes down easily. The Eye avoids the easy, boring, middle ground of a lot of ales and has a deep but not overpowering flavor, and would be excellent company for any barbecue or spicy meal.
I might have said this before, but it bears repeating: I am not a guy for hoppy beers, nor do I generally enjoy IPAs. The White Hawk is a decent IPA that doesn’t punch you in the face with hoppiness, so I enjoyed it.
The Black Hawk Stout was a little bitter and I didn’t really expect that from an “Irish-style stout.” My stout experience is limited to a rather unlimited consumption of Guinness, so perhaps I ought to expand my palate, something I shall enjoy.
For those of you lucky enough to live in the regular distribution area of Mendocino Brewing Co, I’m jealous.
February 7th, 2009 at 3:00 pm
Do not under any circumstances trust Chuckles on beer. His words and enthusiasm are mesmerizing and utterly convincing. He is the Shir Khan of beer demagoguery.
February 7th, 2009 at 5:18 pm
I’m actually more interested in Survivor Brewing Company’s Eye of the Tiger ale.
February 8th, 2009 at 1:28 pm
I am pretty sure I can’t get that for free but I will check on Monday night.
February 8th, 2009 at 4:25 pm
Yeah, let me know if you find it.
February 8th, 2009 at 6:19 pm
I am in agreement with you on the Mendocino Brewing company stuff and the Eye of the Hawk specifically. In fact, this beer has previously been reviewed here and he is 100% correct.
February 8th, 2009 at 8:00 pm
Well, maybe if I’d gone through and tagged all the old posts Chuckles would have known it. As it is, a lot of the pre-wellroundednerds.com stuff is still uncategorized.
February 9th, 2009 at 9:46 am
I think you are overestimating the research that Chuckles is inclined to put into a post…