Franziskaner Hefe-Weisse Dunkel
This beer is a 5.0 ABV, hazy brown in color. It is brewed in Munich, Germany by Spaten-Franziskaner-Bräu under the strict Bavarian Purity Law of 1516. That meant only certain ingredients could be used to make beer. The ingredients were water, barley, and hops. I am guessing that is why it doesn’t have the full bodied flavor that all of my favorite Belgian beers have.

Aroma 5/10
Appearance 7/10
Flavor 8/10
Palate 8/10
Overall 7/10

Aroma; To tell you the truth I probably should have given it lower than a five on aroma. It really was not an appetizing smell. Maybe it is just me today but when I opened the bottle the smell was almost like dishwater. Sure glad it tasted better.
Appearance; While there are plenty of beers that have that cloudy look this one just didn’t pull it off. Maybe if it would have been a little darker or lighter it would have looked better.
Flavor; The taste wasn’t bad. Kind of weak but all in all a very drinkable beer. I could see drinking this with spicy Italian food or maybe some pizza.
Palate; The finish on this beer was slightly bitter but nothing to detract from the flavor. As a matter of fact I think it actually added a little to it.

I might try this one again later. One things for sure, there will be none left tonight. This pint was gone before the article was done. Do you think they will let me take the cost of the beer I drink off of my taxes as a business expense?
Open Road Biker

Hobgoblin
This beer is a 5.2 ABV, dark ruby red with in color (maybe more of a light brown with a hint of red). It reminded me of a few of the dark Belgian beers I have tried with a great finish and almost no after taste. After drinking this one I purchased a six pack of bottles (this first one was a pint). This beer ended up being great with BBQ.

Aroma 9/10
Appearance 8/10
Flavor 10/10
Palate 9/10
Overall 9/10

Aroma; The smell of this beer made my mouth water. It has a slight peppery smell.
Appearance; For some reason this beer didn’t have a good head as you can see from the picture but it had plenty of carbonation. You should be able to see the bubbles rising in the glass.
Flavor; Upon first taste I knew this beer was a winner. It had great roasted malt flavors with a very mild bitterness. It may have had a hint of fruit but it didn’t shine through too much. Not sure why but it just seems to me to be a beer made to drink with red meats and BBQ.
Palate; The finish on this beer is very pleasant. No bitter beer face. It is almost as smooth as any other beverage you would choose to drink.

I will be trying to keep a bottle or two around for those steak dinners and when I have time to crank the grill up. Have you tried it before? Tell me about it in the comments section. As always drink responsibly and don’t drink and ride.
Open Road Biker

Jack’s Pumpkin Spice Ale
This beer is a 5.5 ABV, light brown in color (maybe more of a dark, dark gold). It tasted like a few Pilseners that I have drank before but it had a bitter finish. I purchased a six pack because my brother had said that he wanted to try it. I have to wonder if it will all get drank though. I guess we will finish it. It may turn out to be good with a meal or something. We should be having a big dinner on Sunday (they had better have me a birthday cake, my bday just passed on the 20th). So here we go into the numbers;

Aroma 7/10
Appearance 8/10
Flavor 6/10
Palate 5/10
Overall 6.5/10

Aroma; The aroma wasn’t bad, the smell did make me look forward to drinking it. The bad thing is that the smell and the taste didn’t really resemble enough to amount to anything.
Appearance; This was a good looking beer except for the flat head. I have to wonder if maybe these beers had been on the shelf too long.
Flavor; This was the first downfall, now it wasn’t entirely unpleasant but it wasn’t something I would want to drink very often. While I could taste the faint pumpkin flavor and it did add a little extra flavor to the beer, it just wasn’t enough to cover that rough pilsener taste. Maybe if it was a smoother beer to begin with then the flavors would have shone through.
Palate; This finish was rough, nothing more to be said. I was making that bitter beer face with the first few sips. I guess this was what really made it an undesirable beer for me.

I guess when it boils down to it I can’t put this in the bad beer column because it did have a few redeeming qualities and a few of you out there may even like it. We all have different tastes so maybe you will have a different opinion of it. Have you tried it before? Tell me about it in the comments section. As always drink responsibly and don’t drink and ride.
Open Road Biker

Orval Beer

This is a reddish/light brown beer that made an awesome, huge head while pouring. It looked like I had made a beer float! The fragrance was strong but sweet. It made my mouth water just thinking about it. The first taste was a little bitter but surprisingly it had a real smooth finish. It is hard to explain but usually when the beer is bitter I have a hard time drinking it but this one went down real well. It has a 6.2% alcohol content so it is not one of the stronger Belgian beers. So here we go with the ratings.

Aroma 8/10

Appearance 8/10

Flavor 9/10

Palate 9/10

Overall 8.5/10

Aroma; This had a great aroma. This beer was one of those where the smell reflected the taste very close.

Appearance What a great looking beer! I was ready to drink this beer as soon as I poured it. I usually wait for the foam to flatten just a little but I didn’t waste any time drinking this one.

Flavor The flavor of this beer was just as pleasing as the look and smell. Yes it did have a slight bitter start but it did not detract from the flavor, it only added to it.

Palate What a finish, smooth with a taste of barley malt and that bitterness came from the hops.

This is the first beer review where I am going to strongly encourage you to try this one. I guarantee you will not regret it. This will definitely be a beer that I will keep on hand. As always drink responsibly and don’t drink and ride.

Now, my first impression of the beer was made very quickly. As I was pouring it I could smell it. It has a tart almost flowery smell. I am not sure how to explain it because I have never really had one that gave off a smell as strong as that. The head was very foamy and I couldn’t get but half of the beer in the glass before the head was at the top. It was also one of the thickest I have seen that lasted for quite a while. As for the taste it wasn’t quite as hearty as you would think. It was a fairly light or thin beer. I thought it would have a fuller or thicker flavor. Now the first taste wasn’t very sweet and it had a tart finish. It had no bitterness at all but the tartness was kind of hard for me to get past.
So here are the ratings that I give it (all ratings are on a 10 point scale with 10 being the best);
Aroma 7/10
Appearance 8/10
Flavor 4/10
Palate 4/10
Overall 5.75/10

Aroma; The smell while strong was somewhat appetizing. I was really looking forward to drinking the beer.
Appearance; I am here to tell you that it was a good looking beer. If you chose a beer on appearance alone then this would be the one. I was so disappointed when I tasted it.
Flavor; While the beer looked and smelled good the flavor was a let down. It barely had any distinguishable flavor at all until the finish and then it was tart. I was expecting more.
Palate; This was probably the flattest, least exciting beer that I have drank (that includes domestics). It was hard to distinguish any of the flavors and it just left me with a bad taste in my mouth.

Now I know I said in the last beer article that any beer with an average better than a 5 that I would drink again but this one will not be something that I will be drinking that often. I have one more and I am going to give it a second chance but I am here to tell you that it isn’t looking good for a better review. Now who else out there has tried it? If you had a different experience with it I want to know. Because I cannot control the storage of these beers while in transit or the age then you never know if I have just got a skunky beer, especially with beers that I have never tasted. So please keep that in mind. Some of these beers come from thousands of miles away and you never know what they have been through.
As always drink responsibly and please don’t drink and ride (CDR, Cherry, Chip, Frankenstein, and crew).

Aroma; It doesn’t smell much different from a Budweiser. Nothing special here and nothing to call home about.
Appearance; Coming out of the bottle it has a clean, golden look with a light head without too much carbonation. After it is poured it has a cloudy appearance. By far a better looking beer than it is.
Flavor; The flavor isn’t great but it is a beer that you can sit down and enjoy for the sake of enjoying a beer.
Palate; This is where the bitterness factor comes in. This is by no means a real bitter beer but it does have a slight bite at the end.
Overall; Anything over an average of 5 I will drink again and this just barely makes the cut. Understand that I drink beer to enjoy the flavor and not the effect so it is important for me to enjoy it. If you find it in your local bar then try it, if you enjoy light colored beers you may find it to better than I did. Well that is all for now but until the next time drink responsibly and please don’t drink and ride.

Well that is all that is going on here today, until next time be safe and enjoy the ride while you can.