It's Friday night which basically means nothing to me because I work in retail. I have to be in to work by 5:30 tomorrow morning, so I'm trying to take her easy tonight. So how do I do that? Well with an 11% American strong ale, of course. I have had a Southern Tier Oak Aged Ale sitting in the cabinet for a couple weeks now. It is the second installment in their Cuvee series. It is pretty good despite being on the sweet side. But this isn't a post about this particular beer. What I want to talk about is session beers vs. specialty beers.
When I realized that I was going to be staying in tonight, I had to make a choice. Should I drink one specialty bomber at 11% or should I go the session route and be able to drink four or five beers. It's a real dilemma for me. I like specialty beers when they are done well. They can have some real complex flavors and aromas. But I can only really have one a night. That is why I am more a fan of session beers. I can drink Sierra Nevada Pale Ale all night long. It is delicious and refreshing. The flavors and aroma are simple but really really really good. Tonight I was counting down the time until I could dig in to my Cuvee. I could have started at five, but then I would have to shut it down before eight o'clock. I really love beer. I love the way it tastes, I love the way it smells, I love having a full pint in my hand. I often find myself wishing that beer had lower alcohol content, but tasted the same. I want to be able to drink it from the moment I get home until when I fall asleep. But that can't really happen because despite the frequency with which I drink, I am still basically a light weight (literally and figuratively). Six session beers and I am in the bag. This one bomber at 11% is equivalent to four session beers, which is all I really want to drink in a night when my alarm is set for 4 o'clock tomorrow morning. So I have to make this bad boy last me the rest of the night. This is my main problem with specialty beers. I am not very patient and have a hard time pacing myself. Specialty beers take away part of the beer drinking experience for me. I like to be able to drink at my own pace and not get totally hammered right away.
Complex does not equal good. There are some great specialty beers with really complex flavors, aromas, and ingredients. There are probably just as many overdone imperial whatevers with 12 different malts and 38 different varieties of hops. Like I said earlier give me a pale ale any day of the week where I can taste/smell the two or three kinds of hops. I don't want to drink a beer with cascade and not be able to smell it. Cascade smells amazing. Why would you want to bury that.
There is also the problem of value. If I buy a 22oz bottle for eight bucks and it is no good I feel cheated. I could have got a six pack for that. It only gets more ridiculous from there. For me a Belgians are always a gamble. They can run upwards of $14. You can, however, take this with a grain of salt, because it is coming from a guy who spent $36 on a bottle of Westy 12.
The debate continues. I probably sound like I come down on the side of session beers. If I had to pick one or the other, I would go with sessions. Luckily I do not have to pick. I do really enjoy specialty beers. My favorite time to drink big beers is after I have been up all night counting inventory at work. I use them as a reward or a consolation prize depending on how my numbers come out on these nights. When I get home at three or four in the morning still wide awake from working, a big imperial stout is the perfect thing to put me down before the sun comes up. Now I'm thinking about those Sierra Nevada 30th anniversary stouts I have in the cabinet. Mmmm, they are a treat. Until next time, cheers.
