Based on the successes of their initial efforts in the Wild Sour Series, Bloomington, Illinois’ Destihl Brewery has continued to expand the line. We were fortunate enough to receive samples of their Lynnbrook, a Raspberry Berliner Weisse. The beer pours with a vibrant pink color and a complex nose that showcases the sharp bite of raspberries; Lynnbrook’s head sits on top of the effort for a short time before dissipating…
2XIBA is the latest seasonal from Lakewood, NY’s Southern Tier Brewing Company. This india style black ale pours with a tremendously dark chocolate to midnight coloration and a fair amount of tannish head that creeps its way down a glass as one continues their journey. On the initial sip, imbibers will experience a blend of piney and fruity hops that are quickly followed up by a strong toasty, biscuity side…
The major issue that we have experienced when it comes to pumpkin beers is the overwhelming tendency to make the efforts much too sweet to counteract some of the more sour and vegetal flavors of the aforementioned gourd. In doing so, brewers completely obfuscate what makes pumpkins so interesting. Idaho’s Tommyknocker brewery has created their Small Patch Pumpkin Ale, which is a well-balanced beer that allows the natural flavor of…
Rum King is an Imperial Stout from Minneapolis’ Indeed Brewing. The effort is aged in rum barrels, and pours with a dark brown to inky black coloration. A decent amount of mocha-colored head sits on the top of the pour. One can immediately smell the alcohol and rum burn issuing forth from a snifter; prepare to have your breath taken away with the first pull of Rum King. After this…
Death By Coconut is the latest seasonal brew from Oskar Blues, and it provides imbibers with a refreshing update to the porter style. The brewery has tagged this as an “irish porter”, meaning that it has a deep, dark coloration, a thick and fluffy amount of off-white to tannish head, and a set of flavors that are bold and front-forward. Death By Coconut is sweet with a little bit of…
Winter Storm is the current seasonal from Heavy Seas Beer, and the beer pours with a dark-brown to orange-reddish coloration and a decent amount of foamy head. The beer provides imbibers with a good amount of malts at the beginning before opening up and presenting spice, toast, and caramel elements. The eclectic set of flavors that are present in Winter Storm ensure that individuals will be as stoked to finish…
Smuttynose has released a number of iterations of their short weisse style, including their blueberry, smoked peach, and unfruited variants. The Cherry Short Weisse is their current version, and the beer is wheaty, presenting tangy alongside yeasty notes.There is an immediately-dissipating head to the Cherry Short Weisse.
The Summit Unchained series continually goes and has interesting interpretations of various beer styles. The series attempts to resurrect some styles that are not as common today, and the 20th effort in the Unchained series, their Sticke Alt, looks to reinvigorate the altbier style (to say nothing about a more esoteric style, the eponymous Sticke Alt, which beefs up the malt and intensity of the parent approach). Summit’s Sticke Alt…
SanTan Brewing Company’s MoonJuice is a fruity and piney India Pale Ale (IPA) that is eminently drinkable, hiding away a 7.3% ABV perfectly among hoppy and grainy elements. Pouring from a can, MoonJuice pours with a yellowish-gold to light orange coloration and a decent amount of whitish head. Hints of peach, pineapple, and orange can be discerned, while the bitter elements of the beer keep the brew crisp; a good…
Aspen Brewing (Aspen, CO) and Casey Brewing and Blending ( Glenwood Springs, CO) have collaborated on an extremely-limited Biére de Garde. This effort pours with a hazy brownish color and a small amount of head that lays upon the top of the beer. The Biére de Garde’s nose is fairly funky, with prune and citrus elements present. On the initial sip, imbibers will experience vanilla, brown sugar, and fruity elements that…
Great Divide’s Hibernation Ale has finally made its way to cans, and this classic has never seemed more drinkable. The beer pours with an extremely dark brown to ruby coloration and a good amount of decent amount of off-white head that rapidly dissipates. Hibernation Ale goes down incredibly easy, a dangerous proposition when one considers the 8.7% ABV of the brew.
Pouring with an extremely dark brown to nearly black color, the Bourbon Barrel edition of Buffalo Sweat, Tallgrass Brewing Company’s oatmeal cream stout has a nose that is sweet with hints of coffee and chocolate. The aging that Buffalo Sweat goes through imparts hints of vanilla and a spicy bourbon bite to the conclusion of each sip. While the beer is light on the alcohol (5.8% ABV) when compared to…
The Hop Harvest Oktoberfest by Peak Organic Brewing (Portland, Maine) is a marzen that pours with a dark brown color that has a slight touch of orange. The head of the beer is off-white to yellow with a good finger’s worth of foam. The initial nose yields hints of malt and sweetness, trends that are just part of the complex set of flavors that one will experience when cracking into…
Oskar Blues has placed an eponymous IPA into their year-round rotation. The beer pours with a dark yellow /light orange coloration and a good amount of foamy white head. The initial nose of the IPA ties together citrus fruits, grain, and a small bit of malt. The raspberries, pineapple, and a bit of an alcohol burn makes this IPA into something that is just as exciting at the conclusion as…
Smuttlabs Oktoberfest (marzen) pours with a yellow-orange color and a small amount of white head that sits on the top of the beer. There are hints of grain and wheat discernible from the nose of the beer, while one will be immediately impressed with the eminent drinkability of this beer. Smuttynose has hit the mark here, as the resulting Oktoberfest has a good amount of malt, a small hint of…
Fordham Brewing’s Rosie Parks Oyster Stout is built upon oyster shells from the Chesapeake Bay, and it is a wonderfully complex brew that cuts down on the sweet side by inserting a little umami flavor into the mix. The stout pours with a dark brown to black coloration and a decent amount of tan head that rapidly dissipates. This Fordham effort possesses a nose that links together toasted malt and…
Snake River Brewing (Jackson, Wyoming) has created an eponymous Pale Ale which pours with a yellowish-orange coloration and a ton of beige head. Floral and hoppy sides are present in the initial nose on the beer, while the first sip that an individual takes will showcase perfume and rose elements. There is a good amount of grass and wheat notes that make their presence known at the beginning of a…
Samuel Adams’ Fat Jack is the rare example of a pumpkin-themed beer that showcases the natural flavor of the gourd rather than taking up a set of flavors more akin to a pumpkin pie. The beer is a hazy orange-brown color and pours with a small amount of yellowish-tan head that will create lacing down a glass. The initial nose of Fat Jack provides imbibers with some idea about where…
Along with the brewery’s Trippel, Colorado’s New Belgium has also revisited their Abbey, a Belgian-style dubbel. The beer pours with a mahogany brown and a large amount of off-white to beige head. The beer has hints of Belgian yeast and a decent amount of cinnamon and nutmeg. The alcohol content of this Dubbel is perfectly hidden, making for a malty beer that is perfect for the increasingly cold winter months.…
Kansas’ Tallgrass Brewing Company has just released a canned run of their Big RICC, a 10.5% ABV Russian imperial stout (RIS) that includes coffee and chocolate. Big RICC pours with a dark brown to black coloration with a substantive amount of tannish head. The beer laces its way down a glass, while providing imbibers with a good amount of bitterness (both from the inclusion of coffee and the 65 IBUs…