Slottskällans Slottslager

Slottskällans Slottslager (Bottle) 5%
The bartender said it was a lager with some extra hops. Yeah right, I thought, this is going to taste just as bland as the other lagers I've had recently.

It poured a clear golden liquid with a small foam that left no lacing, so far a standard lager.

But when I leaned closer I immediately smelled something different. It had a distinct aroma of grassy hops, citrus and fresh fruit and something sweet. Quite fresh and not what I expected.

So I tried it out and it tasted of grassy hops, however with a low to medium bitterness so it's far from having allot of hops in it. However it's still nice to encounter a lager that tastes of its ingredients. It was also fresh and smooth with some citrus, bread and malt. Well balanced and I couldn't find any bad tastes. This is definitely one of the better lagers I have tried, even if it is far from one of the better beers I've tried.
Total: 2,7/5

Trip to Sandhamn

Me and Karin took a boat to Sandhamn the other day. Sandhamn is a small village on an island in the outer parts of the archipelago.

We had to start out early since the boat left the docks at Strandvägen at 09:30. When we got there the boat was packed but we managed to get seats next to an elder German couple. It took about 2 hours and 30 minutes to get to Sandhamn with several stops along the way. They had a couple of beers but nothing really interesting. Some Newcastle Brown Ale, some Czech lager, Spendrups and so on.

Once we got a shore all the passengers started spreading out, most seemed to have a destination. We just walked around a bit to see what kind of restaurants where around. We decided to go for lunch at Sandhamns Värdshus. They had some fairly cheap dishes (69-89 sek) compared to the other places. I ordered Biff Lindström and it was really good and served with the biggest nob of garlic butter I have ever seen. Definitely worth the 69 sek I payed for it. I liked the place as well, friendly staff and a cozy environment. The only downside was the lack of interesting beer (standard Carlsberg supply). But they did have a Slottskällans Slottslager so I went for that one. It was the only one I hadn't had in a long time. I will post a review of the beer later on.

After lunch we walked around on the island for a while. It was bigger than I expected but still quite small. There are no cars on the island and people use small four wheeled vehicles as transports. The central parts of town are littered with small red houses and narrow streets; every now and then we spot the ocean in between the houses.

After walking around for a while we found a secluded beach on the north-west side of the island. It had a mix of small rocks and sand but we managed to find a good spot and it was nice to get away from all the people. The water was really cold but I still managed to get Karin to take a dip.
Before getting back on the boat we went to the Sandhamn bakery that was still packed. I think they must have had a constant queue all day long. Something had to be good about this place so we queued up and bought a cardamom bun and some bread. The bun was amazing and so was the bread. Definitely going to buy some more if I get back there.

While waiting for the boat we had some ice cream in the sun. A nice trip that I would happily do again someday.

August news at Systembolaget

I've been trying the new beers that where released at Systembolaget on the first of August. Missing from this post is a couple of bigger bottles that I saved for whenever I get visitors over, Brooklyn-Schneider Hopfen Weisse and Houblon Chouffe. Both are very high rated and I can't wait to open them up.

Valeir Extra (Bottle) 6,5%

It poured a cloudy yellow-brown liquid with a big foam that left allot of lacing.

It had an aroma of yeast, sweet pear and a hint of white wine.

The first thing I noticed was that it was very smooth with a thin body. The flavor was weaker then the aroma. It had a taste of bread, yeast, hint of ripe fruit. A nice beer, very drinkable but nothing special.

Total: 3,6/5

Shipyard Brown Ale (Bottle) 4%

It poured a dark clear brownish liquid with a light brown medium sized foam that left some lacing.

It had an aroma of chocolate, caramell and a hint of something smoked and burned.

It was smooth but a bit thin body, with some chocolate and an alcoholic finish.
Total: 3,3/5

Augusti Månens Premium (Bottle) 4,6%
It poured a clear golden liquid with a medium sized foam that quickly dissapeared and left some lacing.

It had a weak smell of malt and bread.

It was smooth with just a bit stingy bitterness at the end, but yet low bitterness. Had a weak flavor of bread and malt with an alcoholic finish. No bad tastes, but felt like a very average lager.
Total: 1,5/5

Sierra Nevada Bigfoot - Barley Wine Style Ale (Bottle) 9,6%
It poured a clear dark amber liquid with a medium sized foam that left a nice lacing.

It had a very strong smell that I could sense even as I was pouring it. Spicey, with sweet caramell, yeast, malt, hops, citrus and some alcoholic warmth. A very thick aroma.

The first thing I noticed was a very high bitterness and a thick body. It also had some malt. sweet caramell and hops. The alcohol was well hidden and is only revieled by the warmth that spreads in my mouth afterwards. Also leaves a very dry tingly sensation in my mouth. I really enjoyed the high bitterness, a very nice beer.

Total: 4,1/5

König Ludwig Weissbier

I saw an interesting bottle at Hemköp a few days a go. A wheat beer at 2,9 %, of course I had to have one.

König Ludwig Weissbier (Bottle) 2,9%

It poured a hazy orange-brown liquid with a huge foam that left allot of lacing. At the bottom of the bottle it had allot of yeast. It looked quite interesting actually.

It had a weak smell of foam banana and a hint of yeast. It was weak but still strong enough to sense without trying to hard.

Once I tasted it the real downside of the beer showed. It had a thin body that made it seem watery and a bit bland. But you could still sense that it was a wheat beer although it also felt like a mix of lager. It had both some foam banana and bread/malt. However it was still quite drinkable and I enjoyed it with the food. Definitely a lighter kind of beer I would try again.

Total: 2,5/5

BFM Cuvée du 11ème

I tried a beer from this brewery a while back and didn't like it at all. During the Blues Festival it was time for a re-match. Per bought this bottle as a gift to my father. As you will soon see I liked this one allot more.



BFM Cuvée du 11ème (Bottle) 5,5%

It poured a dark brown liquid with a big foam that left a nice lacing. It had a sweet and sour smell, with some sour fruits and a hint of wine. It tasted smooth with some sourness and ripe fruit. Allot better then the last beer I tried from this brewery. The sticker says it's a porter but it doesnt really taste like one. Still, I quite enjoyed this beer and will happily try one from this brewery again, despite the bad start.
Total: 3,6/5

Pride and beer, part 2

After the parade we visited Bishops Arms on Vasagatan. We ate a burger each at 50% discount and drank a couple of beers. Since it was Pride week I figured the Rainbow Warrior would be a suiting beer to drink ;)

Närke Rainbow Warrior (Draught) 6,5%
It poured a slightly hazy golden liquid, with a medium sized icream looking foam that left allot of lacing on the side of the glass. The foam stayed around until I had finished the beer and it looked very appealing.

It had a smell of grassy hops, hay, citrus and grapefruit. It also had a hint of something nutty, couldn't quite put my finger on it.

It tasted very smooth and fresh with grassy hops and some grapefruit. The bitterness was medium to high, but not overwhelming at all which made it easy to drink. A real thirstquencher and I would have loved to try it in the sun. But it worked great in the hot weather as well.
Total: 4/5

Ocean Eko Pale Ale (Draught) 4,5%

It poured a hazy dark golden liquid with a medium icecream looking foam that stayed a long time.

It had a week aroma of gras, wood and smell that I associate to barns. But not the kind you store animals in.

It was very smooth and easy to drink, but also had a thin body. The taste was weak with hints of hay, grass and caramell. It also had a burned and smoky finish.

Total: 3/5

Oskar Blue's Dales Pale Ale (Can) 6,5%

It poured a hazy dark orange-golden liquid with a big foam that stayed a long time and left a nice lacing.

It had a fresh aroma of grasy hops and citrus. Very nice!

Just as the other two beers it was very smooth. It tasted sweet with some caramell and grassy hops. Not as good as it smelled but still nice. Definitely the best beer I've had in a can.
Total: 3,6/5

Pride and beer, part 1

We watched the Pride parade today. It was actually the first time for us since we are usually home visiting the Blues Festival this time of the year. I have to admit that it was allot bigger then I expected. Lots of people and a huge parade that really kept the party going.

There was just one group that brought down the mood, the group (can't remember their name) that had written a big post on the side of their car: "Hate rich straight white men!" and a bunch of other weird slogans. That group just felt so out of place in this type of environment, counteracting the whole idea. Instead of tolerance, understanding and acceptance, they brought hate, intolerance and prejudice.

But that was the only dark spot in an otherwise great parade, Im definitly coming back and watching it again.

Here's some pictures:

After the parade we walked from Zinkensdam to Bishops on Vasagatan for dinner and a couple of beers. Why walk so far? Because we had a discount ticket on food :) More about the beer in the next post.