Brewery: Tommyknocker BreweryLocation: Idaho Springs, Colorado
Name: Alpine Glacier Lager
Alcohol by Volume: 4.5%
Name: Butt Head Dopplebock
Alcohol by Volume: 8.2%
Name: Pick Axe Pale Ale
Alcohol by Volume: 6.2%
I happened to be in New Jersey the other day dropping off something at a lab for work , when I drove by a Canal's Liquor Store. I decided there would be no harm in stopping in on the way home to see what they had in terms of domestic six-packs. To my surprise, I found a gem: a six pack sampler from the Tommyknocker brewery. I was ecstatic. I had, up to this point only seen 12 pack samplers and case samplers. I jumped on the opportunity and brought the sampler home.
I started with the Alpine Gold Lager. Each of the beers has a description of what the mining dwarves did in the 1800's, and how that inspired the name of the drink, so each beer comes with an amusing story. I decided to drink these beers from a glass rather than the bottle, so I poured the lager into a pint glass. For someone who has had a lot of lager to drink in his life, I'm always surprised to see a lager with a goldish color, rather than the darker brown of the Yuengling Lager. Unfortunately, this lager wasn't anything too special than the other gold lagers I've had to drink. Don't get me wrong, I'd drink this again, but if you're looking for something special or a little pizzazz with your beer, take a pass on the Alpine Glacier Lager.
Next I decided to have the Pick Axe Pale Ale. In retrospect, I should have started with the Pale Ale. Most beer companies have a pale ale, whether it be an India Pale Ale, English Pale Ale or American Pale Ale, so it's a decent measurement of how seriously the brewer takes his craft (I think). THIS IS NOT ALWAYS THE CASE. Certain brewers have a signature beer, like Yuengling, Sam Adams, Anheuser-Busch, or Miller, which is not a Pale Ale, or they may not even make a pale ale to compare. As with the Alpine Glacier Lager, I poured it into a pint glass, and it had the typical Pale Ale amber color. The Pick Axe Pale Ale is not as hoppy as I would have expected from a microbrew, which is nice. However, there isn't too much to write home about with this beer either. I would drink it again, but not over trying another beer.
Last night I decided to have the Butt Head Dopplebock with my dinner. An excellent choice on my part. The wife and I had fajitas, and this dopplebock had just enough sweetness in it to counteract the spiciness of my food. The alcohol content is a little high to have these one after another after another, but the flavor and heaviness of it make me want to try it again, without the food interaction.
