Aspen Brewing Releases “Cougar” on Christmas Day
Aspen Brewing is set to release a sour blonde this winter; Cougar (6.5% ABV) will be rolling out from the brewery in 22 ounce bottles and is part of Aspen’s Temerity series.
Author: Sargeant
Buffalo Sweat (Tallgrass Brewing Company)
While there was a certain complexity given to Tallgrass Brewing Company’s Buffalo Sweat when it was given time in bourbon barrels, we found the base-level Buffalo Sweat to be on of the most engrossing and delectable stouts we have reviewed in 2015. This oatmeal cream stout pours with a decent thickness and a dark-brown coloration. A fair amount of tannish head pours on top of Buffalo Sweat; the nose of…
My Turn Series #016: Todd
The My Turn series by Lakefront Brewery is an institution at this point; employees of the brewery get the chance to do a one-off effort in a style that the brewery does not create. Todd (quality manager at Lakefront) suggested that a Belgian-style quadrupel be made, and we were lucky enough to receive a bottle.
Ozeri Touch Professional Digital Kitchen Scale
We cook all the time in our kitchen but did not have a scale to measure things – sure, we had measuring cups, but nothing in the way of a digital scale. The simple fact is that a lot of the measuring cups suffer in determining the difference between liquid and dry ingredients, which means that there are different portions of flour and sugar and that for broth and water.…
Boomsauce (Lord Hobo Brewing Company)
Boomsauce is a pretty heady IPA (India Pale Ale) from Woburn, MA’s Lord Hobo Brewing Company pouring with a dark yellow to golden coloration and little in the way of head. The lacing from Boomsauce is barely present. Immediately present in a glass of Boomsauce is a good amount of effervescence, which imbues upon the effort a certain lightness. This lightness ensures that one will delve into Boomsauce with aplomb and…
Stumptown CandyPeel IPA (BridgePort)
Stumptown CandyPeel IPA , BridgePort’s latest offering is an India Pale Ale that comes forth with a little more of a sweeter and more citrus-heavy elements than a typical effort in this style. There is a mild nose to this one, heavy with hints of grain and bready malts. The beer pours with a dark-yellow to orange-brown coloration and a decent amount of whitish head. Stumptown CandyPeel has a decent…
A Few Moments with Mundo
Today, we are speaking with Mundo, a performer that deftly weaves together birthright and his current living arrangement. As a polyglot, would you agree that language is powerful? Music has a similar transformative ability. What does your mélange of the two say? (smiles) Well it’s my personal belief that it’s really very very difficult to understand a people if you don’t speak or at least know a little bit about…
Waring Pro SB10 Professional Immersion Blender
I am familiar with a great many of the different types of blenders that one can use, from food processors to the normal bowl ones, but I do not believe that I have ever had the chance to use an immersion blender. The immersion blender looks more like a power tool than something that would be in a kitchen, but the rugged styling that Waring puts on their SB10 is…
Pale Ale (Sugar Creek Brewing Company)
Charlotte, North Carolina’s Sugar Creek Brewing Company has crafted a unique and alluring Pale Ale that has a richness and fullness to the effort that separates it from other pale ales currently on the market. There is a good amount of off-wheat head that sits on top of the beer. The decent amount of malt that is included in this effort makes the beer stand up well; the sharpness of…
Dubbel (Destihl Brewery)
Illinois’ own Destihl Brewery has created a dubbel that hits all of the high notes of the Belgian style without moving too far into the pruny tastes that sink many a dubbel. The beer pours with a brown to mahogany coloration and a small amount of off-white head that rapidly dissipates. The initial nose of this Dubbel is sweet, heavy with raisin. and concludes with a bit of malt at the…
Sean McMorris Elevated Man CD Review
Sean McMorris has released a new album, Elevated Man, that will take listeners through a number of styles and approaches before spinning to a close. The eponymous track is a sedate effort that ties together the easy-listening rock of the seventies with a more contemporary alternative style. The instrumental and vocal sides of the track create something that stands up to repeat spins. Bent Out of Shape is a bouncy track…
R10T – Digital R10T EP
Death Pony Express is the opening track on Toronto’s R10T’s Digital R10T EP, and what listeners will immediately take from this track is that vocals are not required when attempting to tell a story. The rich narrative that is weaved through samples/arrangements in unparalleled. Hints of Plastikman, Prodigy, and “Pretty Hate Machine”-era Nine Inch Nails represent the bedrock upon which R10T creates his music. The dynamic sound of this opening salvo…
Run To Life – Can’t Write Love Songs CD
Nation of Winners is an emotive bit of rock from Run To Life on their latest, Can’t Write Love Songs, that blends together tremendous instrumentation with a haunting set of vocals. The dynamic allows each side to shine while creating something that is decidedly greater than the sum of the constituent parts. Is It for Good is a tender and touching composition that is sedate and soft before opening up…
Twelve24 – Cool Like That
Twelve24 has just released a lyric video for “Cool Like That”, their latest single off From the Ground Up. The track bubbles with a catchiness that is hard to beat, building off of the works of acts like the Black Eyed Peas and Walk the Moon. A lush production allows the instrumentation to shine as brightly as the vocals, without the resulting track sounding muddy. Cutting out before the 2:45 mark,…
Dessy Di Lauro – Go ‘Head D (Hi-D-Ho) / Say Hep Hep
Go ‘Head D (Hi-D-Ho) is a track that refreshes the timeless Minnie the Moocher by Cab Calloway into a pop/R&B blend that will dig its hooks deep into the minds and hearts of listeners. Let Me Hear You Say Hep Hep blends together the work of performers like Blu Cantrell and Mary J. Blige with Harlem of the twenties and thirties.
Chestnut Saison (Smuttlabs)
While nutty flavors are quite commonplace in beers, the presence of nuts in the brewing process is slightly less so. Of the top of my head, we last encountered nuts in our beer with the Black Walnut Dunkel from Perennial. Smuttynose’s Smuttlabs label has challenged the common conception of what a saison can be with their latest, a Chestnut Saison. What results here is a bold blend of nutty, spicy, and…
Newberry Eruption (Worthy Brewing)
Newberry Eruption is an aggressively-hopped imperial red ale that makes for a formidable brew, something that will warm individuals as we move towards the winter months. The effort pours with an intense red coloration and a small amount of off-white head. The sharpness of the hop bitterness that is experienced here is moderated by an similarly-strong malt presence. The thin to moderate mouthfeel of Newberry Eruption is the perfect vehicle…
471 IPA – Dry Hopped Hüll Melon (Breckenridge)
Colorado’s Breckenridge Brewery has made a high-octane variant of their 471 Small Batch IPA, making for one of the best double/imperial IPAs that we’ve reviewed this year. The 471 IPApours with a copper to gold coloration with a nose that is heavy on woodsy and piney elements. An initial sip yields vanilla, spice, cantaloupe and bit of honeydew. As the 471 Hull melon warms, a greater amount of sweetness swells up…
Dirty Bastard (Founders)
One of the smoothest scotch ales we have received, Founders’ Dirty Bastard is a beer that pours with a dark brown to reddish coloration. A good amount of tannish head pours on top, yielding a tremendous amount of lacing as an imbiber continues along their journey.
Setting down with DownTown Mystic
We’ve been lucky enough to interview DownTown Mystic in April of last year. In the 18 (or so) months since then, what has changed for DownTown Mystic? There’s been a lot going on. We’ve recorded a new project called Rock’n’Roll Romantic and I decided to take on social media as a full time job to start promoting it. And when I say full time job, I’m not kidding. I can…