Banana – Lavender Honey Mead: An Arranged Marriage

Bananas and Lavender Honey

It isn’t often that I make something that wasn’t riotously planned out with an exact flavor in mind for the outcome.  This is one of the exceptions.

My wife and I had a couple pastele making days this winter. If you don’t know what pastels are, think of tamales but made with plantains and green bananas instead of corn.  When my wife went into the grocery store to buy the bananas, she said to the produce clerk, “I need ____ pounds of green bananas.”  The clerk told her that if she purchased a whole box of bananas, that she would get a much lower cost per pound on the bananas.

So she bought awhole box.

Pasteles are awesome.  I could eat them until I puke and then eat some more.

On New Year’sDay, we made 100 pastales.

We had 35 green bananas left over.

What do you do with 35 bananas?

Zion Canyon - Jamaican Style Lager

There is a lot going on here for a light lager. And I'm not sure what make a lager "Jamaican" besides being highly carbonated.

There is a lot going on with the flavor of this beer. It's malty and sweet. A lot of residual sweetness is not uncommon in Caribbean beers. Caribbean stouts are usually sweet stouts.

There is a light, but noticeable amount of hop flavor. IBUs = 22, but really don't seem like it. I'm getting a light fruity citrus from the hops. I'm guessing Cascade.

Uinta Brewing - Hazel Amber Wheat Ale

I'm surprised I haven't reviewed this beer before. I drink it a lot because I like to buy Uinta's variety 12-pack.

I'm a proponent of Ambers as a nice balance between hoppy and malty beers. I'm also a proponent of mixing styles. however, I find that an amber wheat ale is a odd duck.

Instead of being a strong "I am different" statement, it seems to be a beer that is unsure of what it wants to be.

The maltiness is slightly negated by the creaminess of the wheat.

The hops are there, but appropriate to the style, are not strong. I'm guessing a mild c-hop.