OMG this is THE worst tripel I have ever had. Little body, no head, no bite, no character. Horrible beer.
Update: As the beer warms it gains some, just a little really, character. It develops a mild floral nose, the hop notes come out but there is still no bite. It’s still sitting at the bottom of my tripel list at this point.
Being this is The Drunken Hiker you may be asking, where are all the hikes? Well, there haven’t been as many as I would have liked. The last one I went on that did not consist of walking on city streets was a couple of months ago at Land’s End in San Francisco and Pigeon Point along the San Mateo Coast. Here are some images from that day.
I’m working on getting back into REAL hiking as opposed to the walking I have been ramping up this year. If I can make it up the Bitch soon, then I know I will be back in form (for those not in the know, the Bitch is the nickname my on again off again hiking buddy gave to The Joyce Trail in Santa Teresa County Park.) Here’s an example of the hilly terrain I’ve been dealing with of late…
Yeah…that’s a pedestrian bridge near home. I did get the chance to wander the beach at Santa Cruz 2 weeks back.
It was a gorgeous day at the beach and immensely fun watching my friend climb the cliff to get the shots over the beach. I promise, I’ll pay attention to the DH blog and maybe add some more. Been thinking of doing movie reviews again and maybe just some random mumblings.
So, I’ve ignored this blog for a long time. Mostly this is due to the fact that some bad medical news has put my beer adventures on a hiatus. But, being the rebellious, lazy person I am, I bought some new beers last weekend I wanted to share.
First and foremost, I picked up 3 bottles of Firestone 2016 Edition of Stickee Monkee. Good luck getting a review on that as I simply don’t want to open it…yet.
Here are some of the other new beers (new to me) I picked up:
I’ll do a write up on these 3 soon but I’ll give you a preview. The Dragon’s Milk would have sold me had it been sold as a barrel aged black ale or lager. A stout, this was not. The Tanilla was well rounded but failed to really pop. The Grand Cru…well this beer hit on all cylinders and blew the head gasket. It was a bit too much. Too sweet and too boozy (13.9% ABV).
I have yet to try Maui Brewings Coconut Porter…and I swear I’m missing a few more. I will update with some real reviews later.
Out on the town today trying a new (to me) beer. Anchorage Brewing – The Tide and its Takers. This is a barrel aged triple aged in Chardonnay barrels. The beer is quite dry with distinct spice notes an a slightly sour finish. Quite refreshing on a hot day.
Been doing other things of late. Need to get back into the blog posting. I did try a nice little stout called The Dark Truth recently, but have done no new hikes lately. I have a desire, but no real plan, to hike and/or bike Angel Island this month. Stay tuned…
This is the Troubador Sorachi Ace Belgian Triple India Pale Ale. What a mouthful. It has all the hallmarks of a good tripel. Citrus notes with a sharp hop note and high alcohol. A quite refreshing brew. It’s competing with the Tripel Karmeliet which is my current favorite tripel.
The mailman was kind enough to just deliver a 3 pack of Brew Dog San Diego Scotch Ale.
I’ll give you impressions later tonight. My laptop is currently undergoing surgery. Or will be after I finish copying files to the new drive.
Update:
I promised you an impression and here it is: yum! The beer is a dark, creamy brew that hints of coffee, caramel and rum. The rum flavor comes from the aging in rum barrels but it is quite distinct from whiskey barrel aged beer. It’s a shame there are no US distributors (that I have found.)
Update 2:
The first bottle of this was awesome and as described. The subsequent 2 bottles weren’t the same. The smoky flavor was over pronounced and tasted almost burnt. I must have had 2 batches represented in those 3 bottles.
I have to come to grips with the fact that I’m way out of shape. Before 2010, I had never hiked the Joice Trail in Santa Teresa County Park (STCP). While losing weight in 2010, I came to love that hill because it challenged me. My goal was to get to the top without stopping to catch my breath, and, in 2010 and 2011 I did just that. Today, I made it up with one stop. That, is a big improvement. Last autumn, I turned around well before the summit. Gaining 50 lbs. in 3 years will do that to you. So, I’m on the mend so to speak.
Red indicates my path…
Today’s hike was a ~5 mile loop roaming through much of the park. The wind on the hillsides was stiff but refreshing. The sun only beat down on me during the last mile of the hike. The beautiful part of starting on the Joice Trail is that nothing on the rest of my hike is even remotely challenging after that. From the upper overlook on the trail you are afforded a spectacular view of Santa Clara County.
Santa Clara County from the Vista Loop
After the Joice Trail, my route turns to the Vista Loop. A short loop that can be addressed one of 2 ways: clockwise with a gradual incline and a steep downhill segment, or counterclockwise with a steep uphill bit and a gradual descent. I did counter.
The route rejoins the Joice Trail heading into the park with a very steep downhill segment. The path then turns right to go deeper into the park via the Bernal Hill Trail. This trail winds through some oak to connect with the Mine Trail.
The mine trail can take you either down towards the Norred stables or deeper into the park. Heading into the park you cross Bernal Road. After the crossing, the Mine Trail continues to the right, the Pueblo Trail to the left. The Mine Trail takes you up, then down into a valley with a small, normally dry, creek running through it. On previous hikes, I have seen wild pigs, coyotes and signs of mountain lions in this part of the park. Also, you can sometimes find wild artichokes growing off the trail. The Mine Trail comes to another junction in this small valley. The Stile Ranch Trail branches to the right and will take you on a very steep path. The Mine Trail goes uphill from here then down to the Fortini Trail junction. Continuing on the Mine Trail, you will then come to the Rocky Ridge Trail junction. Rocky Ridge lives up to it’s name and will take you the long way to Coyote Peak. We’ll save that for another day.
View From Mine Trail
From the junction, the Mine Trail continues to the left into the Pueblo Day Use Area. The route takes you past the large group picnic areas to finally connect with the Hidden Spring Trail. Going right will take you the short way up to Coyote Peak, but the car is another 2 miles to the left.
Hidden Spring Trail starts your descent out of the park. You can often find wild turkeys nesting under the oaks along the trail. The trail crosses the old Bernal Road along the way. The old roadway is slowly being claimed by the weeds and oaks. The trail will hit the junction of the Ohlone Trail before it hits Bernal Road. Across Bernal Road, the trail runs back into our old friend, the Mine Trail. This bit of the Mine Trail starts out dirt, but transitions into a steep asphalt downhill segment that can be murderous on the knees.
Old Bernal Road
Near the bottom of the Mine Trail, you will turn left onto the Norred Trail. The Norred Trail skirts the old Buck Norred Stables that now acts as a staging ground for county park vehicles and equipment. The trail takes one final uphill run just to get the heart pumping again before it settles into a gentle stroll on the side of the hill. At the end of the Norred trail you come back to the Joice Trail and a quick downhill to the starting point.
So here’s the deal; next week, on May 7, 2013 I’m going to start my Northern California beer tour. Planned stops will include:
Here’s a map:
Stay tuned for updates.
The Drunken Hiker 