Beer of the Weekend #66: Montana Trout Slayer Ale
BotW is double dippin’ for the third straight week, but you would know it tonight: I’m only reviewing one beer.
Reviewing two beers in one night is not hard, but it does take time — precious, precious time. I love writing, love drinking beer, and love writing about beer, but after one review I lose focus; I want to do something else. At that point reviewing beer becomes an unwanted chore.
I write about beer because I want to, not because I have to. But when I plan to double dip I feel an unwarranted obligation to evaluate both beers in one night. It’s stupid, but I do it — and my reviews suffer. Last week was a prime example: I completely skimmed over the review for Full Sail Pale Ale. Pale ale is a style of beer I know little about and never tried on BotW, so I wanted to learn about the beer as I drank and wrote about it. But that’s not what happened. I wanted to get it over with as fast as possible.
That won’t happen again. From now on when I double dip I will review one beer on Friday night and the other on Saturday. That way I give both brews the attention they deserve and I’ll be free to do whatever else I want to do. Like be totally engrossed by “Whale Wars,” as I am now.
The first beer this weekend is Montana Trout Slayer Ale brewed by Big Sky Brewing Company of Missoula, Montana.
Hold on — I have to do this. SLAYER!
The makers of Moose Drool are back, but it was unintended. I’ve been eyeing the six packs of Hofbrau Maibock at BevMo! for a long time, but wanted to drink it when it was in season, in May. I decided this was the week. Of course, tonight I went to BevMo! and I didn’t see it on the shelf. Grr. I had to make an uneducated alternate choice.
Serving type: Six 12-ounce bottles.
Appearance: Poured a tinted gold. A finger of light, white head developed but dissipated quickly to a thin lacing.
Smell: Sweet citrus and fruit. It’s hard to pin down, but I’m thinking orange and lemon. There is also a well balanced blend of caramel.
Taste: The citrus from the smell dominates — especially the orange — but is not overly sweet. There is a small hop bite at the end. There is only a slight wheat presence, which is drowned out by the ale qualities.
Drinkability: It’s smooth and easy drinking, and would make a great brew to sip while sitting in a boat for hours on end. The next time I go fishing I’ll definitely pack a case of SLAYER!
Fun facts about MTSA:
-Serving temperature: 45-50°F.
-Alcohol content: 4.7 percent ABV.
-Food pairings: BA recommends Latin American and German cuisine, earthy cheeses like Camembert, and salad. Sweet. A veggie ready brew.
-Montana Trout Slayer is an actual company selling fishing apparel. From what I can tell it’s more a brand name than an outfitter. Like Big Johnson. Lame.
-MTSA is classified as an American Pale Wheat Ale, which BA says is an “Americanized version of a Hefe Weizen.”
-One of the disadvantages of picking a beer without doing prior research is not knowing the proper glassware to use. MTSA should be drank in a pilsner glass, which I don’t have. Would that have prevented me from buying it if I knew? Probably not.
The Quiet Man’s grade: B+.
Reviewing two beers in one night is not hard, but it does take time — precious, precious time. I love writing, love drinking beer, and love writing about beer, but after one review I lose focus; I want to do something else. At that point reviewing beer becomes an unwanted chore.
I write about beer because I want to, not because I have to. But when I plan to double dip I feel an unwarranted obligation to evaluate both beers in one night. It’s stupid, but I do it — and my reviews suffer. Last week was a prime example: I completely skimmed over the review for Full Sail Pale Ale. Pale ale is a style of beer I know little about and never tried on BotW, so I wanted to learn about the beer as I drank and wrote about it. But that’s not what happened. I wanted to get it over with as fast as possible.
That won’t happen again. From now on when I double dip I will review one beer on Friday night and the other on Saturday. That way I give both brews the attention they deserve and I’ll be free to do whatever else I want to do. Like be totally engrossed by “Whale Wars,” as I am now.
The first beer this weekend is Montana Trout Slayer Ale brewed by Big Sky Brewing Company of Missoula, Montana.
Hold on — I have to do this. SLAYER!
The makers of Moose Drool are back, but it was unintended. I’ve been eyeing the six packs of Hofbrau Maibock at BevMo! for a long time, but wanted to drink it when it was in season, in May. I decided this was the week. Of course, tonight I went to BevMo! and I didn’t see it on the shelf. Grr. I had to make an uneducated alternate choice.
Serving type: Six 12-ounce bottles.
Appearance: Poured a tinted gold. A finger of light, white head developed but dissipated quickly to a thin lacing.
Smell: Sweet citrus and fruit. It’s hard to pin down, but I’m thinking orange and lemon. There is also a well balanced blend of caramel.
Taste: The citrus from the smell dominates — especially the orange — but is not overly sweet. There is a small hop bite at the end. There is only a slight wheat presence, which is drowned out by the ale qualities.
Drinkability: It’s smooth and easy drinking, and would make a great brew to sip while sitting in a boat for hours on end. The next time I go fishing I’ll definitely pack a case of SLAYER!
Fun facts about MTSA:
-Serving temperature: 45-50°F.
-Alcohol content: 4.7 percent ABV.
-Food pairings: BA recommends Latin American and German cuisine, earthy cheeses like Camembert, and salad. Sweet. A veggie ready brew.
-Montana Trout Slayer is an actual company selling fishing apparel. From what I can tell it’s more a brand name than an outfitter. Like Big Johnson. Lame.
-MTSA is classified as an American Pale Wheat Ale, which BA says is an “Americanized version of a Hefe Weizen.”
-One of the disadvantages of picking a beer without doing prior research is not knowing the proper glassware to use. MTSA should be drank in a pilsner glass, which I don’t have. Would that have prevented me from buying it if I knew? Probably not.
The Quiet Man’s grade: B+.
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