Monthly Archives: March 2007

Killian’s Irish Red

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Killian’s Irish RedYou pour this stuff into a glass and the head disappears like you were pouring a can of Coke. With a name like Irish Red, you might expect the texture to be a little thicker. BAD NEWS: Killian’s is actually a lager, not an Irish Red ale like the name might lead you to believe.

Killian’s was originally an Irish Red Ale, but when the original brewery went out of business, Coors bought out the rights to market this drink in the US. They screwed around with the formula and re-released this beer as an amber lager in 1981. The unsuspecting population either didn’t notice, or didn’t care.

The body is clear and sparkling, and when held up to the light, the redness of the beer really shows. Do they get this color from the brewing process or do they just dye it to make it pretty?

Hoppy aroma is overpowered and dominated by a sweaty, sticky floor smell. Medium body & good texture. Slighty bitter at first with a malty acidic finish.

  • Appearance: 2/3
  • Aroma: 4/12
  • Palate: 3/5
  • Flavor: 10/20
  • Overall: 6/10

Rating: 2.5

Firestone Double Barrel

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Firestone Double BarrelFirestone Double Barrel Ale is made up north in Paso Robles, California, just outside of San Luis Obispo. So for us kids at UCSB, it always had the street cred of being our local brew. Just like the kids from Chico who can never have a conversation about beer without claiming Sierra Nevada as their own, us UCSB’ers love us some Double Barrel.

It was on tap all over the place, you could get it at Woodstock’s with a Garlic Bird pizza, MMMmmmm. But in LA I am just as content to drink it out of the bottle.  Fortuately, it’s starting to show up more and more around here, in grocery stores and on tap.  I found one at Ralph’s the other day. Such a pleasant and soothing taste that always puts a smile on my face.

Small & diminishing head, clear (and quite loverly) light brown color. The hops give an earthy, flowery smell. It has a complex, full body with medium carbonation. Sharp and crisp at first, yielding to a medium bitter, short lasting finish.

  • Appearance: 2.5/3
  • Aroma: 10/12
  • Palate: 4/5
  • Flavor: 17/20
  • Overall: 8.5/10

Rating: 4.2

My First Post

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Welcome to HAIR OF THE DOG DAVE, a beer blog serving the Los Angeles area. For the time being, this site is focused on the beers, bars, and liquor stores of Los Angeles, with a focus on the changing landscape of beer, and the growing availability of high quality brews.

You might not realize it, but we are living in the midst of a Beer Renaissance, where incredible beer from all over the planet is available at our fingertips. The huddled masses, who yearn to breathe free, are no longer stuck drinking swill like Bud or Coors. The advent of sites like Beer Advocate has made it possible to pull up information on virtually any beer in the world with just a few clicks of the mouse.

With all these choices, beer can become a bit daunting. Even when you’re standing in the cooler section at Ralphs, you have a good 40 different types of beer staring you down. “Pick me! Pick me!” they cry. I swear, sometimes I feel like Angelina walking through an orphanage. I wish I could choose them all, and give all of them a good home, but c’mon David, let’s stay on track here. You came to the store to grab a 12-pack, and that’s it. Stay focused.

It’s times like these where it just seems easiest to grab a box of Pacifico and be done with it. And there’s nothing wrong with that. But sometimes you need to push your boundaries a little bit, and try something new. And that’s where rating comes in.

If you want to expand your horizons, you’re going to have to try a lot of new beer. And how are you going to remember all those sweet pours, malty aromas, crisp sips and bitter finishes without breaking out the ol’ pen and paper? It’s worth the time it takes to sit down and identify all the unique characteristics, and figure out what it is about beer that you really enjoy.

It would be a shame for all the notes in my Moleskine to go unread, so I have decided to publish them here for all to see.

Beer is my passion. I don’t yet consider myself to be a true connoisseur, but hell, I’m 23 years old, I’ve got many beers ahead of me. I expect my tastes and preferences to change over time, and hopefully that evolution can be chronicled through my posts.

Welcome to my site.

Cheers,

Dave

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