Archive for October, 2015

Two Independence Brews

Sunday, October 25th, 2015

While at the Woodside Inn we also tried the two beers from Independence Brewing on tap. The Belgian Wit is an opalescent straw color with bone white head that leaves a nice lacing on the glass.Independence Brewing Wit & Porter The aroma is very light, with some biscuity malt and hints of tropical fruit. The flavor is refreshing and malty, with a significant biscuit and toast character that starts strong but doesn’t last long. The carbonation is rich, so the initial sweetness rolls off quickly. It opens up significantly as it warms, revealing more of the coriander you expect from a wit.

The Robust Porter is basically black. The rocky tan head, which lasts and laces, is beautiful on top but a bit spongey underneath. The nose is a light roasty and nutty character that likewise opens up. The flavor is rich with toast, chestnut and coffee. Though it starts a bit sweet, that doesn’t last, revealing the solid and long-lasting roasted character. The body is full and active, a bit lingering but not unpleasantly so. Overall a very tasty and refreshing porter.

+Independence Robust Porter

3.9 (4-7-8-4-16)

+Independence Belgian Wit

3.7 (4-7-7-4-15)

Gateway Brewing Beer Flight

Saturday, October 17th, 2015

While in Mumbai we stopped over at the Woodside Inn in Colaba and tried all the local craft beers they had on tap. Today I’ll rate the beer flight we had from Gateway Brewing, located in Dombivli. The flight included the three Gateway beers Woodside has on tap: an English-style IPA and two German wheat styles, a light and a dark.

First up was the White Zen wheat beer. It pours an opalescent pale golden yellow with a bit of creamy white head which forms a nice lacing on the glass. The aroma is light, but there’s a noticeable banana character and a hint of clove. The flavor is clean and quite refreshing on a hot day, with a smooth clove character and a bit of sweetness that fades away quickly. Gateway Brewing beer flight The palate is light and active, making for an easy drinking beer, but it asks for just a bit more flavor.

Next we tried the Doppelgänger dunkelweizen, a fairly hazy dark ruddy brown with a little off white head. The aroma is mild, with some caramel and a bit of nuttiness. The flavor, while somewhat flat, is refreshing as well, but otherwise unremarkable. The mouthfeel is creamy and there’s a hint of cloying sweetness at the end. When tasting it I didn’t even realize it was a dunkelweizen, mistaking the mild flavor for a German-style dark lager.

Finally we had the India Pale Ale, with its distinctively floral English character. Their IPA pours a barely hazy cupric gold color with some bone white head. The light aroma is mostly hops, a light herbal and floral nose. The flavor is likewise mostly floral hops, with hints of biscuity malt character spicing things up. The palate is also light and refreshing, but the carbonation ends up being a bit too harsh.

+Gateway White Zen

3.8 (4-7-7-4-16)

+Gateway India Pale Ale

3.7 (3-7-8-3-15)

+/-Gateway Doppelgänger

3.0 (4-6-5-3-12)