TEN BEERS THAT I WOULD SAVE FROM A FIRE

The blog remains in a low gear, I’ve had a lot of work and a very little time to write. The best news, in this case, is that the visits have been very limited, so I haven’t deceived many people (I think, and my excuses to that people). This is very first post related directly with beer, and it is a ranking (unavoidable in a blog of this kind) which could be considered as an introduction to my beer taste. So, I’ve told myself, if there was a fire and you have saved all your beloved people and belongings, but you had time to save ten beers from your shelf, Which ones would they be? Well, this is the result. Maybe, if I had written this post three months ago (or later), the list would be slightly different, but 8 or 9 of the beers would be the same. Enjoy.

1.- DE STRUISE PANNEPOT. My favorite beer, in all and every version (Reserva, Grand Reserva, Pannepeut, etc.). A very complex and majestic beer that offers new revelations in every new sip. A whole lifetime isn’t enough to decipher all the infinite corners and nuances of this heavenly brew, which is dangerously addictive. Impossible not to surrender to it.

2.- WESTVLETEREN XII OR TRAPPISTES ROCHEFORT 10. The classics, of course. I’ve included both of them because it’s very difficult for me to choose only one of these beers. Everything is said about them (Everything? Are you sure?), so I can only confess my devotion for both of them, better a little bit aged –specially the Rochefort– but always having for sure that they play a Major League. Unavoidable in a ranking like this.

3.- DE MOLEN HEMEL & AARDE. A massive and impressive smoked Imperial Stout with an immediate classic spirit. Loads of peat and smoke that are like a knock on your nose announce that this beer is like any other in its style. You must be very brave to accept its defiance, but this giant won’t let you go undamaged. If you haven’t tasted it, this “Heaven & Earth” will make you to raise again all your beer values system. The Bruichladdich barrel version is the perfection: you would deserve some curse if you see it and let it go.

4.- GREAT DIVIDE HERCULES DOUBLE IPA. It was love at first sight. Its orangish color with sediments and the snow-like head are an irresistible make up for this mischievous lady. In the first sip, you’ll asked her to marry you. Elegant, balanced, strong and wonderful as itself, is plenty of flavor and, the most important thing, of soul. Since the moment I’ve met it, I can’t live without it.

5.- AYINGER CELEBRATOR. The German beer power and history summarized into a bottle. The best Doppelbock I’ve ever tasted, it’s a beer with no flaws, perfect, pure tradition running through your throat. An exquisite taste for a perfectly balanced, seductive and serious beer, without any trick or cheat. Sehr Gut!

6.- ANCHOR OLD FOGHORN. I love Barleywine, and this one is among my favorite ones. For sure there are better beers in its genre, but I got a special feeling with this one. It’s warm, very pleasant and has the property of being full-bodied and easy to drink. A little bit complicated, but no complex, I guess that it will improve if you drink it sitting by a fireplace in a winter snowy night.

7.- BREWDOG/NØGNE/MIKKELLER BLACK HORIZON TOKYO. Three-in-one or, said in another way, the best of three wonderful worlds. Petroleum in a bottle, this beer is born as a future legend. Probably, in that future it will remain as a good experience for these brewers and a coveted object of desire for beer geeks. A definitive, brutal beer almost chewable that has came to stay (I hope).

8.- SAISON DUPONT. Well, if I’m escaping from a fire, it’s almost sure that I’ll be thirsty. This beer is the best remedy for it, a classic –and probably the most famous- Saison which possesses a delicious and strange combination of elegance and rusticity. A sip makes you feel like being in the Belgian countryside in the warmest day of the year. And it’s a great sensation.

9.- SCHNEIDER AVENTINUS. The Eisbock par excellence. The strongest beer style has in this brew its best business card. A very strong but drinkable brew, with a warm character and personality. Nonetheless, like a medieval knight, it’s brave and strong, but can be treacherous: you always have the impression that something is hidden behind its rocky cuirass. Don’t worry, it’s a honest beer: it never will attack you from behind, it will do from the front. Really delicious.

10.- DE STRUISE BLACK ALBERT BATCH ’0’. The list ends as it begun, with a De Struise beer. In this case, it’s the best Imperial Stout brewed in Belgium and one of the best in the world. This Albert is where all begun: father of Black Damnation series, these sons are very respectful and good ones to their father, specially the fifth one (Double Black). Anyway, the sons are good apprentices, but the master is their father. We all salute you, oh great Black Albert.

And you? Which beers would you save? Do you recommend me to change any of the list? Which saved one, in your opinion, is a waste of time?