Pierre, it seems, is immune to heat. While the rest of us spent the summer hiding in the air-conditioning, avoiding large pots of boiling liquid, Pierre was brewing repeatedly in the hot sun. Does he not feel the heat? Does he not care?
One presumes, however, that even Pierre would object to setting his house on fire. That might be a little too hot.
So it was somewhat startling to find Pierre encouraging other YAHOOS (Jaime and Mara, to be precise) to show off their skills with flaming rope darts on his front lawn. I’ll be honest: I would not want fiery projectiles in flight near my house, or even my shrubbery. Pierre thought it would be fun.
In the end, no flames were lit. Mara thought it would be unwise and, since she is the only club member who actually owns rope darts that can be set alight, her good sense prevailed.
While the August meeting may have lacked dangerous fire tricks, it did not lack for excellent homebrew. Many great beers were judged. Tasting notes as best I can decipher:
- Hydromel “dry flowered” in the bottle with lavender, Paul. Not judged, just discussed. Nice herbal aroma but a bit flabby. Lacking florals. Needs to be repeated with better honey.
- Session NE IPA, Andrea and Dave. Aroma of melon and spice, a little dank, some DMS, bitter finish. Very drinkable. All Citra and Mosaic. 34
- Berliner Weisse, Mark. Strong aroma of parmesan and bleu cheese, which dissipated. Raw bread dough and cherries, tart, hoppy, somewhat under-carbed. Soured at 95F – should be a little warmer. 27
- Specialty IPA, Jaime. Herb and pineapple, tropical, somewhat too bitter, super hoppy, some vegetal notes. Contains oats. 33
- Dubbel, Pierre. Dark fruit and alcohol, spice, cedar, a little tart, somewhat harsh, not quite as drinkable as it should be. Only 2 weeks old. 35
- Pale ale, Mara. Sweet malt, DMS, butter, herbal hops, straw, a little bready. Definitely quaffable. Undercarbed. 34
- Cream ale, Paul. Corn, chlorine, subtle grain, canned veggies, tea. Balanced and fits style guidelines. Needs more bubbles. 37
- Blended kriek, Andy. Tart cherries, barnyard funk, solvents, earth, a little vinegar. Tastes more like a Flanders red. Briny finish. Needs more bubbles. Extremely drinkable. 35
- American IPA, Caysey. Tropical fruit, coconut, guava. Clean, clear, great head, balanced, super-drinkable. Sabro hops and pearl malt. 41
- Saison, the Huxfords. Fruity, slightly medicinal, coriander, raisins, pepper, clove. Would score higher as a tripel. Needs to age a little. 29
- Blonde ale, the Huxfords. Esters, pepper, grain husk, very dry finish, very drinkable. Was cleaner when young. 36
- Saison, Jaime. Citrus and spice. Very bright nose. Cloudy. Sweet up front with a super dry finish. Very drinkable. Needs more bubbles. Styrians, Saaz, and Citra. Made with kveik durint the heat wave. 40