Deadlines are for people who get paid to do this...

...hence, I am still poor and feel somewhat justified (but a little guilty) for never having this up on an actual Friday...

We all (and by this I mean serious beer drinkers-even those committed to the "big 3") have our "go to" breweries.  The ones to which our hard earned money is most frequently distributed.  For me, one of these breweries is Avery Brewing.  I have yet to be disappointed in a beer that I have selected from them, so, this week's Friday Night Pint was another offering from Avery....Hog Heaven,which is described on the bottle as a "dry hopped barleywine style ale".  Now the way I see it, you're either a barleywine, or you're not.  Can I describe myself as a "sturdy brunette style slender blonde"?  Probably.  But it wouldn't take you long to figure out the description was a crock of sh*t.

But I digress.  Hog Heaven is copper colored, medium+ bodied beer, with low hop aroma, but a surprising hop flavor (you don't expect it based on the subdued hop aroma).  A very thin white head disappears quickly, but leaves a great lace on the glass.  The beer has a distinct sweetness, but finished very dry.  Despite the fairly high 9.2% ABV this is a very drinkable, and overall, a good beer.  However, the characteristics seemed very similar to many Imperial IPAs I have tried (admittedly, I have tried very few barleywines, but I have tried LOTS of Imperial IPAs).  Not a bad thing, but maybe that explains the odd description on the bottle.  Maybe they just couldn't decide what kind of beer this actually was, so they called it "a barleywine style ale", instead of just a barleywine.*  Please do not view the picture below if you have a strange fear of flying pigs.

Stolen from their website because I couldn't get my picture to download properly...tech nerd I am not.

So, there you have it.  Friday Night Pints, on a Wednesday.  So what else is new.  Stay tuned for my new strategy for getting this done on time this Friday...

Anyone have any suggestions for a beer for me to try?  Sometimes I hate making that decision.  I usually feel pressured to leave the beer aisle after the second or third employee asks if I need help.  Nope, just an indecisive beer stalker.  So, if there are any suggestions out there, let me have 'em!!  I'll even mention you in the blog, because that would make you cool. 

Until next time..

Cheers!
Becky

*When I was illegally copying and re-using their Hog Heaven label art, I noticed that most (if not all-didn't look because I was in a real hurry to get my blog up a week late...) of their beers are labeled as a "______ style ale".  I guess they don't like being forced to conform to a style, so that gives them leeway?  So confused...