Anchor Summer Beer (JT's Review)

Image courtesy of  theperfectlyhappyman.com

If you have followed our blog, and my drinking patterns, you know that I am not typically into Anchor beers. However, you also know that I love summer time and summer seasonal brews!





Anchor's Summer beer was probably the best Anchor beer that I have tried. It was very wheaty and malty, but still light and crisp enough to taste like a good summer seasonal. I will say that it isn't your typical summer, have a six pack after yard work, kind of beer.






I bought this beer in a build your own sixer at Macadoodles, and I will look for it again.

Ghost River Golden Ale

I live fairly close to Memphis and visit there often for a variety of reasons.  I was extremely happy to discover a while back that they have a brewery called Ghost River.  When it comes to this brewery's beers, they say that "great water makes great beer."  The website will give you the back story on the water from Memphis.  Take it from me (and all my family in Memphis) that Memphis does have great drinking water.  I plan on trying them all but today I will be reviewing their Golden Ale.


Let me tell you, the Memphis water made a great beer when it comes to the Golden Ale.  This looks and feels like your typical lager, but it tastes much better.  It has a little sweetness that gives it a little more body.  Even though it is sweet it finishes crisp.  It is a beer that you could sit down and drink the entire six pack with ease, especially since it only has a ABV of 4%.  I can guarantee that I will pick up some more of this beer the next time I venture over to Memphis.

Yuengling Lager and Yuengling Black and Tan (JT's Review)

picture courtesy of  beer-taster.com

I decided to do this review a little differently. I am going to combine two great beers into one review. 

Yuengling is our country's oldest brewery! It was established in Pottsville, Pennsylvania, in 1829. One of my friends that was playing ball in the northeast sent me some about 15 years ago. I loved it. Yuengling beer is only sold east of the Mississippi River, so it is a real treat when I am where I can buy it. The other night, I was at a friends house, and one of his neighbors produced both flavors for this review from his recent travels.

Their lager is smooth and has a ton of good flavor. It is amber in color and has a sweet caramel taste.

The black and tan was a little different than I thought it would be, but it was great all the same. It tasted a little more like a porter. It had a ton of malts, and definitely had the Yuengling stamp on it.

The next time you venture to the eastern part of the country or if you already live there, this is a must try.

picture courtesy of  http://watermalthopsyeast.blogspot.com 

Trader Joe's Vienna Style Lager (JT's Review)

picture courtesy of  http://www.theperfectlyhappyman.com

Also known as Joseph's Brau, hence the initials JB on the bottle cap, Trader Joes Vienna Style Lager is brewed in San Jose, California. Shawn's wife Hanna made a special stop for us to build a couple of six packs on her way home from a business trip in Missouri. This was one of the samples she brought back.

As most of you know, I am a huge fan of darker lagers. This beer was no exception. It poured a nice copper color with a solid foamy head. It smelled a little sweet and malty. The flavor was smooth and rich. I got kind of a toasted caramel flavor. The finish was easy with just a little bit of a hoppy bit at the end.

This one was a total winner for me. A box of these on a cold winter day will really hit the spot!

Shipyard Prelude Special Ale (JT's Review)

picture courtesy of  yearinbeer.tumblr.com

The word ale without the word brown in front of it usually makes me nervous. However, with Spring here, and winter seasonal's on sale, I felt that I should broaden my horizons.

Shipyard is from Portland,Maine, and makes a great Pumpkin beer. Shawn and I will be taking our families to Maine, this summer and I hope to visit the Shipyard brewery. After drinking their special ale, I hope that they still have some on hand when we arrive!

This was a really good beer. It didn't taste like a typical winter seasonal. It just tasted like a really good smooth beer. It was sweet and malty, with a toffee and caramel taste. There were some mild brewing spices that came at just the right time, with a light crisp finish.

This was more of an amber ale tasting beer to me. I thought it was good. As much as I look forward to warm weather, this one makes me ready for winter again.

Widmer Brothers Citra Blonde Summer Brew‏ (JT's Review)

Image courtesy of  Untappd.com

I love summer seasonal's! Widmer's version was not what I expected, but it was good. It falls into the "different, but good" category. I found it in a 2 for 2 dollars deal at Macadoodle's. I have drank and reviewed a couple of Widmer's beers, and the Portland based brewery hasn't let me down yet. They make good beer, and it is usually has a unique stamp on it. This beer was no different.The name having the word "citra" in it made me think it would be a light fruity beer. It wasn't light at all. It had almost a winter porter taste to it with a faint twang of citrus. I was expecting something that I would want to chug after I mowed my yard. Instead what I tasted was better saved for cold winter day.It was a good beer, but just don't feel like it is going to be a lawn mower beer. Buy it to enjoy slowly, and I think you will be ok.

WE'RE BACK BABY!!!

OK, I know it has been a while since I/we have updated the blog.  Let me say this, it's not because we have stopped drinking beer!!  That's just crazy talk!!  It is totally my fault.  My job/responsibilities had kind of gotten in the way of my posting reviews.  Things have slowed down so prepare yourselves for an abundance of reviews.  As always, thanks for checking out the blog.  Keep drinking, keep commenting, keep reading, and keep drinking........oops, I guess I said that already.