random beers left in my fridge, Part 1

The details: Tired Hands Brewing Company Jeanesee Cream Ale, 5.4% ABV, served in a 32 oz. crowler

I recently put out a call for possible beer review themes that I could consider. I got some great ideas: some could be very easy to do, some will be rather difficult, but I'm going to start working on most of them and when I've got a months worth of reviews, they'll end up here. Of course as luck would have it, right after I sent out that call for ideas, one fell into my lap in the best possible way. 

We love our backyard. It was one of the first things we wanted to work on changing when we moved in, and it's been the best money we've spent on our house by far. Even if the bugs get bad we love to hang out there, I love to barbecue out there, and the lads (Fred and Bruce for now, but I'm sure Ben will soon enough) get to run all their ya-ya's out back there. So of course we had people over for Memorial Day weekend - first to watch the Champions League final, then to celebrate the actual holiday.

As often happens when you have a group of folks over the house - especially when they're the smart drinkers we associate with - you get left with some really good beers in the fridge. That's when the idea struck; my next theme would just be random beers left in my fridge by my friends!

I'm starting off the month with something that my friend Sam left, not just because it's interesting but because it's in a crowler which means it was fresh beer and I don't want it to go bad. It had already released some CO2 while I was in Florida so when I opened the can I got a bit of blow back, but that's easy to get over.

When I first saw the name of this beer I had an inkling of what it was (and not just because I had some vague "i had been drinking" memory of Sam telling me about it). You see, when I was a kid my dad thought it was quite novel to really like beers that he couldn't buy at home. He was a big fan of Yuengling when you couldn't get it in Virginia, but I think his all time favorite out-of-state beer came in a boring green and white can. It had a nickname that I always thought was just slightly naughty - a Genny Creamer - and after finally having one years later I don't know why he really liked Genessee Cream Ale, but my dad likes weird things.

This cream ale from Tired Hands is called Jeanesee, and I really wish I knew more about it. I have to admit that Tired Hands' website is lacking in the area of a full beer list, as they only have current tap lists. No matter: this 5.4% great summertime beer is very subtly hoppy and slightly more malty. It's a light ale that's typically lagered after brewing to get rid of bad tasting esters and make the beer taste cleaner. Jeanesee has more flavor than its upstate NY cousin, which honestly is a great thing. It's an easy drinker that actually has flavor - something that most macrobrews should sort out. Lastly, in case you didn't know, the vast majority of cream ales have no dairy. It's a nod to the creamy flavor, which if you get the chance to have this clean yet malty ale, you should totally do it.

The verdict: 4.0 out of 5 (on Untapp'd - follow me there @slownumbers to see what I'm drinking!)