Dogfish Head Midas Touch Golden Elixir

[BluesHarp]

Has anybody tried this? Ratebeer has page after page of reviews, but I am still confused...I would like to know what some of you think.
I find it somewhat odd that it is sold in clear bottles...do I have to worry about UV damage on this stuff, my paint store has several bottles on the shelf...should I ask for one fron the stockroom?

While I'm at it...Steveh, have you had a chance to put together your impressions on the Dragon's Milk yet?? I'm curious to hear your take on this very unusual beverage.

[chazwicke]

I have a bomber of it in my fridge. It has been in there a while. I guess I need to try it soon.

[steveh]

Originally posted by BluesHarp Has anybody tried this? Ratebeer has page after page of reviews, but I am still confused...I would like to know what some of you think.

What an odd coincidence - my local paint purveyor gave me (yes, gave - it's good to have low friends in high places) a bottle of this over the weekend and I sampled it last night expressly for a Tasting Note today! Now, the bottle I had was 12 oz, and brown - not clear. Here's the notes:

Dogfish Head Midas Touch 9% ABV - Label states: "A handcrafted ale with barley, honey, white muscat grapes, and saffron." Saffron?

I don't know exactly what I was expecting, obviously a darker beer as I was surprised to see the Midas pour a bright, clear golden honey color with a thin (but noisy) head - effervescent and reminiscent of champagne -- and mead...mmm, meeaad. The carbonation bubbled champagne-like through the life of the glass - anyone know if DfH uses a champers yeast in this?

Chardonnay-like smooth grape and honey nose with alcohol filtering through. Some sulfur present, but I'm not familiar with saffron aroma. More malt blends with the grape and honey as the ale warms.

The first hit of flavor is smooth, maltiness - light biscuit/cracker flavors with alcohol asserting its presence, but not overpowering. With warming, the grape flavors mingle unusually nice with the malts. Finishes with maltiness and alcohol, and the grape/malt blend lingers in the aftertaste.

Thin, slightly syrupy body from the honey. Very mead-like in its consistency and light effervescence.

What an unusual and delightful surprise of a beer. Very refreshing, yet complex in different ways from other beers. As I tasted I decided that this was a very interesting hybrid of beer, wine, and mead - looking at the Dogfish Head site this morning, here's their description:

"Our recipe highlights the known ingredients of barley, white Muscat grapes, honey and saffron. Somewhere between a beer, wine and mead, this smooth, dry ale will please with Chardonnay or I.P.A. drinker alike."

Couldn't have said it better!

S.

[steveh]

Originally posted by BluesHarp While I'm at it...Steveh, have you had a chance to put together your impressions on the Dragon's Milk yet?? I'm curious to hear your take on this very unusual beverage.

I had one bottle last weekend, but I wasn't prepared to take notes, nor was my palate - with some other beers preceding it. Initial impression was outstanding.

I'll crack another bottle soon - and I still have a few from Chaz' trade that I haven't chilled down yet. So many beers - so little time!

S.

[steveh]

"Our recipe highlights the known ingredients of barley, white Muscat grapes, honey and saffron. Somewhere between a beer, wine and mead, this smooth, dry ale will please with Chardonnay or I.P.A. drinker alike."

Couldn't have said it better!

Although...there really is no hop character to this beer at all, so beware IPA drinkers. But I recommend sampling this beer for, if no other reason, than its unusual blend of flavors. Might not be for everyone, but it's worth experiencing once.

S.

[Bruno_78]

Originally posted by steveh
I wasn't prepared to take notes, nor was my palate - with some other beers preceding it.

steveh, you've touched on a point here that has had me wondering for a while. I'm relatively new to the craft brew scene, and thoroughly enjoy visiting new pubs. But I always want to try all of their beers. Is this a good idea or should I pick one and stick to it to get a full appreciation of the beer?

[steveh]

Originally posted by Bruno_78
is this a good idea or should I pick one and stick to it to get a full appreciation of the beer?

Between the brew-pubs I visit and the good beer bars around, I've found that it's pretty easy to get samplers (platters of select beers at the brew pubs) and even half-pints in order to sample the varieties available.

I always start with the lightest bodied (not necessarily the lightest colored) beer first and work my way up to the heavy ones. Some small bites of bread in-between can cleanse your palate, and a glass of water helps too.

I usually pick a favorite of these and then have a full pint - and sometimes the full pint can give a different impression too, so the experiment is far from perfect.

At home, as when I sample for the notes I post, I tend to evaluate one beer per sitting and start with a clean palate in order to get the full experience of the beer - this is why I opted not to evaluate the Dragon's Breath the night I tried it. I had sampled a couple hoppier beers before and knew they would effect my impressions.

As an example, I drank a Sam Smith Nut Brown Ale the other night, then followed it with a Sierra Nevada Pale Ale. Usually a pretty hoppy beer, right? The flavor of the Nut Brown lingering in my mouth negated any of the hop character in the SN - but it also helped accentuate the SN's malts! It's very interesting how easily the taste buds can be influenced. It's the same in pairing beer with different foods, the same beer can taste different between a pasta dish and grilled fish. But you know, that's a big part of what makes beer enjoyable!

A couple books I recommend; for beer tasting details and info: The Essentials of Beer Style by Fred Eckhardt - the last chapter particularly, Beer Tasting Just for the Fun of It. And Oliver Garret's new book, The Brewmaster's Table: Discovering the Pleasures of Real Beer with Real Food is proving to be pretty enjoyable.

S.

[davesarman]

I've had the Midas Touch before and pretty much concur with steveh's review. I thought it was pretty tasty and very interesting. Slightly sweet, and not at all bitter. You can really notice the grapes. More of a Springtime beer than a winter beer in my opinion. The kind of beer you'd have while dining alfresco with some nice bread and cheeses. I haven't had it since my first tasting last spring, but I think it's definitely worth trying.

[chazwicke]

Originally posted by steveh
Between the brew-pubs I visit and the good beer bars around, I've found that it's pretty easy to get samplers (platters of select beers at the brew pubs) and even half-pints in order to sample the varieties available.

I always start with the lightest bodied (not necessarily the lightest colored) beer first and work my way up to the heavy ones. Some small bites of bread in-between can cleanse your palate, and a glass of water helps too.

I usually pick a favorite of these and then have a full pint - and sometimes the full pint can give a different impression too, so the experiment is far from perfect.

At home, as when I sample for the notes I post, I tend to evaluate one beer per sitting and start with a clean palate in order to get the full experience of the beer - this is why I opted not to evaluate the Dragon's Breath the night I tried it. I had sampled a couple hoppier beers before and knew they would effect my impressions.

As an example, I drank a Sam Smith Nut Brown Ale the other night, then followed it with a Sierra Nevada Pale Ale. Usually a pretty hoppy beer, right? The flavor of the Nut Brown lingering in my mouth negated any of the hop character in the SN - but it also helped accentuate the SN's malts! It's very interesting how easily the taste buds can be influenced. It's the same in pairing beer with different foods, the same beer can taste different between a pasta dish and grilled fish. But you know, that's a big part of what makes beer enjoyable!

A couple books I recommend; for beer tasting details and info: The Essentials of Beer Style by Fred Eckhardt - the last chapter particularly, Beer Tasting Just for the Fun of It. And Oliver Garret's new book, The Brewmaster's Table: Discovering the Pleasures of Real Beer with Real Food is proving to be pretty enjoyable.

S.

Steveh, once again has it absolutely correct. The only addition I would make is that when attending a beer festival where there is lots of beers and breweries attending, Choose a couple of breweries and beer that you really want to taste and hit those first again starting with the lightest and working downwards. Choose carefully as after some point you will be over saturated and will not be able to taste all the nuances of the individual beers. Also, if you know you are going to drink a really big beer or a highly hopped beer definitely drink the subtler beers first.

Garret Oliver is hosting a beer dinner at the Miami fest and also doing a beer and cheese tasting (Using some of the cask ales)

[chazwicke]

FAB Fest: A Taste of the Beach

A Food and Beverage Tour of the World

February 6-8, 2004

FAB Fest: A Taste of the Beach will be a tour of the world featuring Food ☼Arts☼Beverages from across the globe taking place directly on the white sands of Miami Beach.

Experience a wide variety of succulent dishes from Miami Beach restaurants and the finest beverages enjoyed under the sun.




Themed areas include:

Taste Downunder- Austrailian wine pairings, taste traditional Aussie food, Kangaroo BBQ and shrimp on the barby, music from downunder, chef demonstrations and win a Beef Eater BBQ.
SoBe Sorbet Soul Lounge-Lounge in trendy South Beach style on the beach. Chill out on beds, sample Rain sorbetinis and Miller's Gin classic martinis,while kicking back to soul music.
Sabor Latino-Taste the latin flavor by enjoying beers, rums and food from Latin America. Dance to Salsa music and experience old Cuba with a hand rolled Torano cigar.
Carnival Brazil- Move to the Brazilian beat of samba music. Spend a blissful afternoon sampling Cachaca 51 and Bavaria Beer.
Grand Tasting Tent-Give your taste buds a treat and sample world class international wines, beers, spirits and food from Miami Beach's finest restaurants.
Sports Pavilion- Celebrate South Florida Sports. Sunday, Miami HEAT Day with the Xtreme Team and HEAT dancers. Enjoy traditional all American food and beverage.
Taste of Turks and Caicos- The spirits of the Islands comes to South Beach. Traditional island food, beverages, music and more.
MAIN STAGE:

*Performance art all weekend long featuring LEBO, official FAB Fest artist.

*Celebrity chefs and cooking demonstrations.

*All guests will receive a free J.P. Chenet sampling glass*


FESTIVAL HOURS:

FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 6, 2004

7 p.m.- Gourmet Beer Dinner at Nikki Beach Club with Special Guest Garrett Oliver author of "The Brewmaster's Table"

SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 7, 2004

4 p.m.- 11 p.m.- FAB FEST: A TASTE OF THE BEACH Festival Grand Opening

6 p.m.- Taste Downunder: Australian Wine Tasting

SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 8, 2004

11 a.m.- Trade Session

12 noon- Cheese and Cask Ale Tasting conducted by Garrett Oliver

2 p.m.- 8 p.m.- FAB FEST: A TASTE OF THE BEACH

Miami HEAT Day: HEAT Experience Show

2:30 p.m.- Wines from Long Island's North Fork

6 p.m.- Taste Downunder: Focus on Fitness




Live Music

The Niagaras DJ Safe Stadick SDC

DJ Le Spam and the Spam Allstars Jump n' Jive Fushu Daiko (Japanese Drummers)



Sponsorship & Media Information:

Festival Director: Melissa Frantz, 305.754.5886 ~ melissafrantz@earthlink.net

Director of Sales & Marketing: Melissa Arnold, 305.754.5886 ~ melissa.arnold@earthlink.net

Tickets & Information:

866.FAB.Fest (322-3378) www.fabfest.com

[BluesHarp]

The Golden Elixir will be mine!!

Sounds worth a try...I think I will ask for one from the stockroom; still a bit worried about UV damage from the clear bottle.

Thanks for the input, gentlemen!!

I also plan on trying an assortment of Bear Republic beers in the next couple of weeks as well.

[steveh]

Originally posted by chazwicke
Steveh, once again has it absolutely correct.

Wow, thanks - I think that makes 2 in a row! ;)

The only addition I would make is that when attending a beer festival where there is lots of beers and breweries attending...

Brew-fests are the most difficult for evaluation because there is rarely any provisions for clearing your palate - and just too much beer! I tend to make more mental notes than written, but I usually just get caught up in the festive atmosphere.

But your procedure sounds like the perfect method, Chaz, maybe I can give it a test-drive soon, c'mon Fest Season!

S.

[steveh]

Originally posted by BluesHarp
...I think I will ask for one from the stockroom; still a bit worried about UV damage from the clear bottle.

Look for the four-packs of 12 ounce bottles - they're brown!

S.