Monday, June 16, 2008

Point Einbock (Maibock Style)

Point Well Made. The madmen at the Stevens Point, Wisconsin brewery have impressed me mightily in the past and once again they have made their mark with a brew that says that they care little about cost vs profit forecasts. Brew the stuff and let them drink it.

It is bock beer. It has some richness and good malty pleasure with every sip. It pours a nice deep golden color with a beige, thin head. It has a malty, spicy nose with earthy undertones. My opinion is that this brew is true to maibock form with some nice spicy undertones. The sweet richness accumulates on my lips tempting me to constantly lick. There is also the hops which offer a perfect foil to all the sweetness. I must add one other thing. The mouth feel of this brew is superb, coating my mouth with sweet goodness. Like all Point beers, this one has a lot of balance in the mix. I love it and you will too.

4.5 out of 5 points Spot on and true to style. Point well made indeed.

Cold Spring Honey Almond Weiss

Hey, I am back having just sampled some really good beer...from Cold Spring, Minnesota once again hails Cold Spring Beer. I toured the brewery which goes by the name Gluek Brewing Company. I like the Honey Bock and the varieties of Stite are great. I just wished at the time that they would put some effort into the true craft side of beer...you know, with some effort added to it.

Well, here goes. This brew is markedly better than their past efforts. Some of the styles represent the same direction that Point has gone in with success. Even Anheuser-Busch with the Michelob line has come up with some inspired styles. This is no exception.

Pours nicely with a cloudy golden color and a white head. It is sweet and slightly sour with a nice bittering all at the same time. I really do not notice the almond and as far as I am concerned, they can just reorder labels right now because the brew is fine without it. The citrus is apparent in its nose and there is some subtle I suppose almond along with warm wonderful alcohol working there. It is much more refined than Gluek Honey Bock and I like that brew. I have found here a new favorite but it will not be my exclusive because nothing matches the potency of honey bock for the price. I recommend this brew as it represents a crossroads with this brewery. When I visited them 5 years ago, they were wrapped up in sports drink production and happened to be brewers. Guess what, they have applied themselves and it is a pleasure to try it.

4 solid points out of 5 Nice