The following is an attempt to summarize my impression of the Boston
Beer Works after my first trip there.
The short version: good food for a brewpub, and a couple of very nice
beers, especially on the light end of the spectrum.
The long version:
Locals may remember my previous comments on Boston-area brewpubs; if
not, I'll try to put the beer comments in context by noting that:
My favorite local beer comes from the Cambridge Brewing Company
(ignoring a somewhat raw hefe-weizen last week);
I've found most of the Commonwealth Brewery beers I've tried
uninteresting (though they do have a nice, light, sherry-like
barley wine); and
The beers I've had from John Harvard's Brew House have been
generally tasty but overly light in body.
Somehow, despite multiple visits to the above three, I'd never made it
to the Boston Beer Works until this week. Straining our taste buds a
bit past their limit, Rebecca and I attempted to sample most of their
beers and have dinner on the same trip; the result is that the
individual beer comments will be necessarily limited, and in some
cases almost nonexistent. Also, any comments after the first round
should be taken with a grain of salt, a drop of tabasco and a dollop
of blue cheese dressing.
In general, the food was much better than at Commonwealth or
Cambridge, and probably on a par with John Harvard's. The Buffalo
wings were pretty mild, but otherwise good (admitedly, this is an
oxymoron for many wing-eaters). For a main course, I had a very large
dish of eggplant ravioli with assorted seafood in a fairly heavy basil
& tomato cream sauce. Rebecca's steak was served with a lemon herb
butter, and was otherwise simple and tasty. Both dishes displayed the
same slightly forced inventiveness, but both were at heart good,
well-prepared, and extremely filling. The rolls were topped with some
sort of powdered herb mixture which tasted fine but added an odd
powdery texture. The coffee was chocolate-flavored (though not
offensively so), which will be a plus to some and a minus to others.
On to the beer:
The first round consisted of
Beer Works Bluebeery Ale
One of the two clear winners of the evening. Light, fruity and
well-blended, with a clear blueberry flavor, this was served with
blueberries floating at various levels in the beer. Very
pleasant.
John Hancock Hefe-Weizen
Not bad. This was milder and less yeasty than I usually like, and
was served with a slice of lemon, which I can really do without.
It was, however, very smooth and reasonably tasty. (For the
technically inclined, the menu description states that the beer
was "over 50% German wheat malt and fermented with authentic
Weinstephan Weissen yeast".)
Back Bay IPA
They label this "for hop lovers" and they're not kidding. "Liquid
hops" was my initial description. IPA isn't my usual beer, but my
impression is that this was even hoppier than is usual for the
style in this country.
Curley's Irish Stout
Disappointing. Actually, all their dark beers were a bit
disappointing to me, as they all seemed to lack in body and have
an overly strong roastiness (strongest in the Irish Stout) which I
found marginally unpleasant. Rebecca's first reaction was
"over-extracted espresso". Mine, for some reason, was "soy
sauce". Anyone who can find a common theme here is welcome to
try.
Buckeye Oatmeal Stout
Not as different from the Irish as I'd hoped. Similar flavors
(slightly less intense), much less sweetness than I'm used to in
the style.
At this point Rebecca settled in on the Bluebeery Ale for the rest of
the evening. Feeling adventurous, I moved on to:
Kenm\"ore K\"olsch
The following procedure can provide a good lesson to all
beer-tasting novices: sip for a while on three strong, hoppy,
roasty beers. Now, eat a few spicy Buffalo wings. Finally, take
a good taste of a k\"olsch. Taste anything? If so, your taste
buds are more discriminating than mine. Sorry, k\"olsch lovers;
at this point, I can say that it's better than Zima, but anything
else would be stretching my imagination.
Boston Red
The other winner of the evening (after my taste buds had recovered
a bit). Nicely balanced between hops and malt, and, while light,
it had enough body to stand up to some food. If I had to pick a
single pint for the evening here, this would probably be it.
Fenway Pale Ale
More distinct hoppiness than the Red, and with slightly more body,
while being better balanced than the IPA. While this wasn't my
favorite, I have to admit that it was suffering in comparison with
the Cambridge Brewing Co.'s much more robust Pale. This isn't
completely fair, since they're different takes on the style, but
there it is.
Nut Brown Ale
Same complaints as for the other dark beers; insufficient body and
the same mildly unpleasant roast flavor as the other dark beers,
though this seemed both fuller and milder than the Irish Stout.Boston, MA