When she returned, I was shocked at the number of beers she brought home, and the variety that she had chosen.  She did an incredible job, and I couldn’t wait to charge through them tasting and enjoying them with Courtney and Jordan.  Saturday night I called Jordan up and the tasting began.  While the list would be a bit overkill if I named off every beer, there will be a picture following this post that you can see each of them.  We had several beers from Long Trail Brewing, several more from Stoudt’s, several from Eerie Brewing Co., a beer from Great Lakes Brewing, another from Star Hill Brewing, a few from Molson, Straub, and one from Mountaineer Brewing.  While we didn’t make it through all the beers, we put a big dent in them, trying 14 different beers that night.

For this post, instead of reviewing each of the 14, we decided we would share with you guys which beers stood out from the pack.  We will create a new post as we finish out the rest of the beers we didn’t get to.  Of the 14 we tried, there were 3 obvious picks for beers that impressed us.  These three beers were Great Lakes Brewing Co.’s Dortmunder Gold, Eerie Brewing Company’s Misery Bay IPA (the name alone deserves an award!), and last but not least Stoudt’s Scarlet Lady ESB.  If you are in the Northeastern United States it would not be a bad idea to give any or all of these beers a try, but definitely those three.  As always, the Beer Apostles will be sure to keep you up to date as we finish sampling and critiquing these beers!

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– Will

I opened the large front door to Triumph, whose sign atop the entrance was not a flashy neon mind trip, but just a very subtle marking of their location. Stepping into the dimly lit brewpub, I could see above me a second floor with kettles and holding tanks for all of their beer. The bar, off to the right, had tabletops for groups, as well as seating at the bar for the solo or duo drinker(s). To the left, a regular dining room with tables and booths was also available. After sitting down, I was greeted by an extremely friendly and knowledgeable waiter (who’s name regrettably escapes me) who suggested I try their beer sampler, which consisted on eight 4oz. glasses, one for each of the beers they brewed in-house. I’d like to describe each of those eight beers to you all, including the description for each that they give on their own menus. We’ll start at the lightest, and move forward from there.

Helles Lager: This golden lager (“helles” means pale) is a little maltier and less bitter than pilsner. If you are partial to premium-imported lager, you owe it to yourself to give this one a try. – I must admit, this description is not far off. While I did not find this lager to be very malty at all, it definitely sat much less bitter than a pilsner. The aroma was faint, the taste light, and the finish clean. For those of you who are fans of the Great American Lager, or if you’re a frat boy looking to up the anti, I suggest the Helles Lager.

Kinder Pils: Eine kleine pils for those desiring a beer lower in alcohol. Brewed with the same malts and hops as its bigger brother, this beer can be enjoyed all night long – a milder session pils. - As far as pilsners go, I found the Kinder to be just shy of what one might expect in a pils. Certainly lower in alcohol, I thought the Kinder Pils was also lower in hops and malt than you would find in a standard pils. “Milder” was certainly an accurate description.

Amber Ale: Brewed in a Pacific-Northwest style. Its sweet malty taste is balanced with a generous helping of Cascade hops. - When I first was introduced to the Holy Word of the Brew, I couldn’t get enough of Amber Ales. The Triumph Amber Ale fits the bill superbly, as the combination of malty taste and slight hoppy aroma makes for a wonderful experience all around. I find that cascade hops certainly have a discernable aroma to them, apart from other similar hops flowers, and I could definitely smell it here. I could drink this Amber Ale all night long.

Maibock: In late winter and spring German brewers release strong and slightly sweet lager beers called bocks. Most of these are dark but Maibock (pronounced my-bock) is a blond version, symbolizing the transition from the dark days of winter to the warmth and light of May. - Now, for those of you who have read our previous posts, you know that I actually won the first ever Beer Apostles Brew Off with a Maibock. And while mine certainly tasted of the sweet malty goodness you would expect from any decently brewed Maibock, Triumph’s, I thought, was slightly milder. You could certainly smell the hops, taste the malts, and bask in the glory of late-May German brew-mastery.

Gothic Ale: A millennium ago, before the use of hops in beer became commonplace, European brewers used a secret mixture of herbs called gruit to add bitterness and aromatic flavors to beer. Take a step back in time and quaff a flagon of ale as it might have been in the Age of Chivalry. - Ahh, the sweet taste of history. Triumph’s Gothic Ale was by far my favorite brew in their line up. After bringing the top of the glass to my nose, I could immediately smell the difference between this beer and any other beer I have had before (and that’s A LOT of beers). The smell was grassy and herb-like. Which makes sense, considering they use a mixture of four herbs in place of hops. The taste was full and flavorful, with the malts being balanced perfectly by the herbs, and while the smell was grassy, it hardly tasted like drinking one of those “herbal smoothies” you find at the health food joint on the corner. This tasted like real, classic, true-to-the-bone beer, and I highly recommend this one to anyone even remotely close to the Philadelphia area.

Oatmeal Stout: A velvety smooth stout combining seven different malts plus oatmeal for truly substantial body and texture. – I am ashamed to say that I’m generally not a fan of the Stout beer style. However, ever aiming to allow the Holy Brew to broaden my horizons, I gave the Oatmeal Stout a try. With a creamy beige head, this was definitely a stout I could have had a whole glass of. Not too sharp, this one didn’t slug me across the face like some stouts have in the past. The oatmeal was definitely noticeable, and only added to the incredible mouthfeel this brew produced. If you’re a fan of the stout, or looking for a great beer to ease you into the style, this is the beer for you.

IPX: It’s our old favorite, Bengal Gold IPA, only amplified by a factor of X. More malt, more hops, more strength. - Wow. Ouch. And a little bit of phew. The IPX slapped me across the face, punched me in the gut, and kicked me while I was down. I’m not sure what that “X factor” is, but it definitely sets this IPA apart from many of the others I have tried. If you like hobby, bitter beers, do yourself a favor a pour a glass of the IPX.

Nuit de Folie (Night of Madness): A bold, rich Belgian style quadruple ale that weighs in at 11% ABV, “night of madness” is sure to remedy the malaise of winter. It’s our own answer to absinthe in the form of a full bodied brew featuring flavors of raisins and black currant, with a faint clove aroma. – As a Beer Apostle, I truly enjoy beers that push the envelope. This is one of those beers. While the high alcohol content is certainly noticeable in the taste, what really made this brew enjoyable was the taste of black currant and slightly discernable raisins. The clove aroma was there, as described, and the brew finished clean, without being heavy like other high gravity beers can be. After a glass or two of Nuit de Folie, a night of madness (or extreme bliss) is what you can certainly expect.

I thoroughly enjoyed my visit to Triumph Brewing Company. Next time I am in Philadelphia, it is certainly on the top of my list of places I plan on visiting again. Sadly, they do not bottle any of their brews, so it will be a while until I can taste their Gothic Ale or Maibock again.

– Jordan

In typical Beer Apostle fashion, the two winners of the competition were, of course, the Beer Apostles. Jordan won the first voting system, with Will sweeping the popular vote. Jordan’s German Maibock was brewed intentionally darker than a traditional golden maibock. The color was a caramel brown, with a malty sweetness and a noticeable alcohol content. The taste was slightly buttery, malty, and finished fairly clean. It had a nice, tall white head and sat well in the glass.

Will entered an all-grain, dry-hopped, amber ale.  The amber ale was hopped slightly more than the typical amber ale with is’s IBU falling in the 45 range rather than the typical 20-40 range for Amber Ales.  The brew was hopped with Cascade for bittering, Centenial for Flavor, and Fuggles for aroma.  After 10 days in the fermenter, an extra ounce of cascade hops were added, creating a complex hop aroma.  The complex aroma was evident, but the beer went down smooth and was not overly bitter.  This combination proved to be pleasing as it ranked highest in popular vote.  The way the popular vote worked at the competition went as follows: all participants at the contest drinking and tasting the beers put their favorites in rank order based on any criteria they deemed most important.  That could be that the beer followed the style guidelines best, the beer was the most drinkable to them, they thought the beer was something they would purchase, or simply that the beer was more tolerable than the others.  having the two rating criteria made the contest more interesting and allowed us to shine in different areas, proving to be an overall success.

We plan on having another Brew Off soon, this time with all entrants required to brew the same style beer. So, if you’re interested in joining us in our quest for the best brew, e-mail us at theapostles@beerapostles.com and we’ll get you on the list!

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Saturday was the 9th Annual Dunwoody Beer Festival, hosted by the Dunwoody Restaurant Group. This event is actually a fundraiser for Camp Twin Lakes, a camp for kids with serious life illnesses. For $35 (at the door; tickets were $30 in advance), you were given a plastic cup and access to all of the beer you could (safely) consume, from more than 150 different beers, malt beverages, and liquors from around the world.

Initially, they were calling for rain. “They” being the all-knowing Atlanta weathermen. But instead of raining, it was hot. Hotter than hell, actually. And that’s no Beer Apostles pun. But nothing combats warm weather like cold beer, and there was plenty of cold beer. Now, as Beer Apostles, we were out to try new beers from commercial breweries and mico-breweries alike, and the first booth we stopped at was Jailhouse Brewery. Jailhouse is a micro brewery based in Hampton, GA, and on tap at their booth was their Slammer Wheat, Mugshot IPA, and Breakout Stout. First up for us was the Wheat, and damn were we impressed!  The wheat poured a cloudy yellow-orange color with a medium sized head.  The aroma was somewhat malty with hints of the wheat and even a bit of a fruity smell.  Tastes similar to the smell, but with a greater presence of the fruity elements and even finishing with a bit of a banana flavor.  Things only got better from here. After the Slammer, Jordan tried the Mugshot IPA, and Will sipped on their Breakout Stout. The Mugshot was full of hoppy aroma and flavor, but not so much as to overwhelm the palette. It tasted even better than it smelled, excited the taste buds on the way to the back of the mouth, and finished cleaner than most IPA’s we’ve had. The Breakout Stout was definitely the most impressive of the three, which was surprising to us, as stouts typically are not our “go-to-styles”.  The beer poured a nice black with a bit of  a reddish highlight and a nice creamy head.  It had a very malty aroma with hints of coffee and oatmeal.  For a stout, it was incredibly drinkable and seemed to be on the lighter side as far as alcohol content for a stout, but this was not a bad thing by any means.

After Jailhouse, we made our way around to Magic Hat, Duvel, Abita, Blue Moon, New Belgium, Ommegang, Rogue, Redhook, Sweetwater, and Terrapin. Almost all of the bigger breweries had their classic beers available, and you could always find a Brown or Amber Ale, IPA, and Stout at just about every booth. Of the more pleasant beers we tried, Magic Hat’s Whacko, their summer ale brewed with beets, and Duvel Green topped our favorites list. On the opposite end of the beer spectrum, we also tasted Peak Organic’s Nut Brown Ale and their IPA. Regrettably, we weren’t very impressed with either one. In fact, we are both yet to try an organic beer that we can honestly say we’ve enjoyed. So, if any of you Beer Disciples out there know of a tasty organic beer, e-mail us at theapostles@beerapostles.com and give us your suggestions!

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And what beer festival would be complete without a booty shaking contest? The beer was flowin’, the booties were shakin’, and the music was bumpin’. Granted, we think the person who shook the most booty was some guy who probably got dared  by his friends to enter, and it looked like he actually started to enjoy it more than he would’ve liked to admit.

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All in all, it was a successful day for The Apostles at the 9th Annual Dunwoody Beer Festival. We were pleased to taste some great new additions to the beer lineups at some of our favorite breweries, as well as to discover a great new micro brewery that we hope to enjoy for brews to come.