Blind to Blonde

Tasting session 39

Beer 1 Choices: Irish Extra Stout, Imperial Stout, Baltic Porter, Schwarzbier

Beer 2 Choices: Witbier, International Pale Lager, American Blonde Ale, Munich Helles

Score: 1/2

Beer 1 things to look for:

Irish Extra Stout: roasty/burnt, bitterness from malt, esters? diacetyl?

Imperial Stout: burnt, esters or clean yeast, high bitterness, booze

Baltic Porter: esters, booze, roasted not burnt

Schwarzbier: lightly roasted coffee, clean yeast, thinner body

Notes:

Malt came across like highly roasted dark espresso coffee on the nose and palate, so I felt confident in eliminating Baltic Porter and Schwarzbier that usually have more restrained roastiness. To back that up, the body was too heavy for Schwarzbier, and I didn’t detect any dark dried fruit, licorice, or port wine that would support Baltic Porter. I chose Imperial Stout since I detected alcohol presence and American hop aroma/flavor (spruce tips and cannabis buds). 

This Imperial Stout, Old Rasputin, is deceiving though. ABV is on the lower end of the range for the style, and it comes across as quite dry on the palate with subdued booziness. It’s unlike the majority of Imperial Stouts I’ve seen available which have very high levels of whiskey character, a thick body with lots of residual sweetness, and a lack of hop presence. It’s well balanced, not overpowering, and has lots of character. If you normally reach for lighter beers like I do, you may be surprised at how much you dig this; I was. 

Beer 2 things to look for:

Witbier: orange/coriander

International Pale Lager: less rich Blonde Ale

(American) Blonde Ale: like an American Lager with more body

Munich Helles: round malt, clean yeast, characterful flavor

Notes:

This sample was missing the signature orange peel/coriander character of a Wit on the nose and palate, so that got eliminated first. The aroma and flavor reminded me of an American Lager- no hop character, subdued malt presence, and clean yeast. I’d expect a Munich Helles to have a richer/rounder malt profile, fuller mouthfeel, and better foam retention than this had, so I eliminated Helles next. Since this sample had no bitterness/hop character and poor foam retention, I chose Intl Pale Lager since those beers commonly use adjuncts that would lead to poor foam. In addition, Blondes allow for more hop and malt character, which this lacked. It’d be interesting to try this beer against an Intl Pale Lager and see if I can parse out any other differences. I’m hoping that if I were to get a different or fresher example of a Blonde Ale that more of the nuances would be clear.