Beer reviews and blog posts by Matt
Matt spent the majority of his adult life drinking Miller Lite in large quantities. Largely turned off by darker beers, he was introduced to homebrewing in early 2009. Almost immediately, his taste buds began to morph, accepting beers with FLAVOR and character. Since then, Matt's had fun adventures learning all about beer, especially how to brew it successfully at home. Everywhere he goes he tries new beer and expands his knowledge of what is available. Matt digs Pale Ales and IPA’s.
North Coast Acme California Pale Ale
Appearance: Pours golden straw, cloudy, 1 finger head, disappears to a film. As time passes this beer has turned completely clear. Aroma: Very apparent, grainy, bready, yeasty smell, maybe hops – but not a hop dominated aroma at all. A bit fruity, maybe peach or...
New Glarus Fat Squirrel Ale
A mix of light toast aroma, caramel, and nut. All mild, reserved aromas and nothing major really pops out. Slightly cloudy, copper colored. Light roasted aftertaste with some mild hop bitterness. Decent amount of flavor actually, fairly complex. A nice hazelnut note...
North Coast Old #38 Stout
I’m not a stout drinker … not yet at least. My exploration into the world of craft beer started with a few choice brews which I will list. New Glarus Spotted Cow, Sierra Nevada Pale Ale, North Coast Brewing Red Seal Ale and North Coast Scrimshaw Pilsner. Oh...
Left Hand Snowbound Winter Ale
Smells medicinal, a greeny, almost menthol spice, cough drop anyone? Also picking up some black licorice, cloves and maybe cinnamon. Dark almost black brown color with decent head but vanishes pretty quickly leaving only a faint film. Loosely resembles the surface of...
Bear Republic Racer 5 IPA
Strong, citrus aroma, very hoppy, fruity, sharp, piney. Beautiful golden orange hazy look with 2+ finger head with a normal pour. Fluffy head, tons of intricate lacing down the glass as I drink. Bitter hops hit you in the first sip and the lack of large amounts of...
Green Flash Hop Head Red Ale
Ok, I admit it. I drink a lot of beer. I mean a lot of different kinds of beer. Ok, you got me. But like many people I have a full time job, a wife, a child, a house, a social life, etc. Why am I telling you this? Because I love writing for The Perfectly Happy Man,...
Trader Joe’s Frugal Joe’s Ordinary Beer
Pours a clear, pale yellow with barely a one finger head that dissipates very quickly. This beers smells like the usual American adjunct lager – reminding me of the all too many nights I’ve drank beers of this style in large quantity. It tastes like I...
New Glarus Stone Soup
Pours a semi-transparent gold color, slightly hazy with tons of bubbles on the inside of my glass. Very crisp, dry, highly carbonated light, fruity beer. Elegant and drinkable, (as the label says), I’m going to let this one warm up a bit. Still pretty cold but...
Redhook ESB
Sweet bottle and label. Custom glass with company logo on the shoulder at 12, 3, 6, and 9 O’clock. The bottle actually has two landscape oriented labels one right above the other but separated by another design molded into the glass. This one looks to be almost like...
Sierra Nevada 2009 Celebration Ale
We are in the final days of the year 2009 and I am in fact, celebrating. I have lots to celebrate: a healthy family consisting of a beautiful wife and amazing daughter- 5 years old in a week. A great job, one that uses my unique gifts and allows me to build...
Angry Minnow River Pig Pale Ale
While in Northern Wisconsin over New Years I took full advantage of the “mix your own six pack” feature of the local grocery store. Its something I look forward to because for being in a fairly remote town, this store carries a decent amount of good craft beers. I...
Central Waters Octoberfest
Pours a clear, transparent burnt orange with one finger head, quickly dissipates to a film in a matter of 1-2 minutes. Has the aroma of Munich malt, the typical grain used in the Marzen style. I brewed a Marzen earlier this year (the official style of many Octoberfest...
Odell Isolation Ale
I’m very thankful to my friend Steve in Colorado who generously shipped me a few 6 packs of different beers from Colorado just in time for Christmas. I had my eye on Odell’s Isolation Ale ever since I first visited their website. One of the first things...
Piece Full Frontal Pale Ale
Pours a golden straw color, plenty of foamy head. The smell is a huge hop aroma, like a freshly opened bag of hop pellets (used in homebrewing). Every single time I brew I always take a huge whiff of the hops right when I open the bag – this smells almost...
Recent Home Brewing Activity
What you’re looking at are the balances of 3 recent batches. Where’s the rest? Well lets first go over what these batches are. On the left we have our first ever batch of Apfelwein. A dry, German apple cider. Easily the cheapest and most delicious...