Ymm, Beer!

[devildeac]

Green Monster-Four Saints Brewing

My second half pint of the evening, this one was $2.75. No relation to Fenway Park, but, then again, no info on their site. Listed as a dry hop sour, it had those characteristics. First, it took the beertendress about 10 minutes to pour off enough foam to get anywhere near my 8 ounce serving so I had several minutes to taste an ounce of Biere de Garde from Lost Abbey. I'd return for that one. Back to the pour, now that it's had a bit of time to defoam. Generous foamy, lacy head atop a hazy, pale straw color elixir. Smelled like lemon-lime juice, not soda, and tasted like a tart, unsweetened lemon-lime soda. Minimal bitterness but a moderate amount of pucker. I'll guess 10 IBU and the ABV is a miniscule/minuscule 3.5%.

This brewery's other offerings look rather extensive for a relatively new joint in a somewhat small NC town and I wish they had brought a couple more products I could have sampled without purchasing or committing to another half pint or three.

[devildeac]

Watermelon Dorado-Ballast Point Brewing

Well, I was 2 years late with The Big Squeeze and I'm only 2 months late with this one.

Good summary by fuse, except he forgot to mention the booze in this one . Poured a slightly hazy light gold with tinges of pink. Nose of pine and watermelon. Tastes of a little pineapple, a lot of bitter and a lot of watermelon in the middle and finish with both watermelon juice for some sweetness but more watermelon rind than juice. This is a hop monster at 90 IBUs but there's enough grain/malt/caramel to take the ABV up to 10% for a reasonable balance. I think this would be delicious with some grilled tuna or mahi mahi with a little jalapeno/mango salsa. Happy to have bought one for $2.59 at Bottle Revolution yesterday but wouldn't spend the $15 for a 6er. A good novelty/twist on the IIPA style.

[devildeac]

Ha! Beat me to it. But, I'll turn it into 4 beer posts .

First of four samples of 4-5 oz each:

Every Brett I Take (draft)-Trophy Brewing

Cloudy yellow pour with nose of mildly sweet lemonade and taste of the same with a bit of Lemon Warhead pucker. I'll guess IBUs of 10 based on the style and ABV of 3.3%. About what I'd expect from this type beer. Nice starter with my Bibb lettuce, red pepper, tomato, bleu cheese and bacon salad with vinagrette dressing.

[devildeac]

Citra Saison (draft)-Trophy

Nice twist to a typical Belgian/French farmhouse ale. Light amber color, small head with aromas and tastes of tropical fruits (pineapple? mango?) from the Citra hops. Another nice pairing with my salad. I'll guess IBUs around 20 and ABV listed at 6.5%.

[devildeac]

Perfect Attendance (draft)-Trophy

A standard porter that was a bit thick and chewy for a hot summer afternoon but a well done brewing. Dark brown hue, small, creamy head and several sips of milk chocolate and dark caramels. Would be better paired with a Blondie or a caramel-drizzled brownie for dessert but, nonetheless, very tasty. IBUs guesstimated at 30 and ABV on the chalkboard at 6.3%.

[devildeac]

Way Over Yonder (draft)-Trophy

Pineapple and orange aromas emanating from a hazy orange-yellow pour. Tastes followed with the same. Moderately bitter as expected from a standard IPA with IBUs likely in the 60 range and ABV on the menu at 7%. Good pairing with the salad topped with bleu cheese and a vinegar-based dressing.

Trophy make very good ales, gourmet pizzas and fancy salads.

The fuse family makes for better friends who make a warm, humid afternoon enjoyable and the beverages even more tasty.

[devildeac]

Tangier-Southern Tier Brewing Company

WTH? A session IPA? From Southern Tier? Must be a mistake?!?!

Nope. A non-extreme beer from the brewers of Choklat, Choklat Oranj, Mokah and Creme Brulee. To be fair, they brew a lot of session, seasonal and standard brews so I was happy to see this as a single in my 4 pack of beer-of-the-month club from a local package shop. Poured a slightly hazy orange with a citrus nose. Much like the Big Squeeze, I think I'd have preferred tangerine juice instead of peel, but there was a bit of citrusy sweetness coupled with a bit more than expected bitterness from 3 unnamed hops plus the rindiness. Four unnamed malts lend to a bit of caramel sweetness. No IBUs listed but I'll venture 40-50 and the ABV is sessionable as advertised/expected at 4.6%. I think it'd be tasty with some orange chicken, sweet and sour chicken/pork/shrimp or a fruity salsafied light seafood dish. Glad to taste but wouldn't buy a 6er.

[devildeac]

Numero Uno Agave Cerveza-Flying Dog Brewery

According to their website, this was originally brewed/released in 2014 as one of their brewhouse rarities as a tribute to easy-drinking south-of-the border lagers. Looked like a light lager in my pint glass with a small, fizzy head. Smelled and tasted like a lemon-lime shandy and actually rather refreshing on yet another hot, humid NC summer night. And I'm not really a shandy fan. Grains: Bon Munich and flaked maize (ole!). Hops: Hallertau and Saaz. IBU listed at 20 and ABV is 4.9%. This would be pleasant with a plate of boiled shrimp and a game of corn hole on your lawn/in your driveway. Single 12 ounce can that was part of my beer-of-the-month 4 pack for August. I wouldn't have selected this off the shelf from my local craft beer store but happy to have tried it.

[devildeac]

White Thai-Westbrook Brewing Company

Their take on the traditional Belgian witbier, only they substituted lemongrass, ginger toot and Sorachi Ace hops for the typical orange peel and coriander. They ended up with a cloudy, straw-yellow hue with a fizzy, white head with a modest amount of lacing. Smells like a mild lemon candy (not sour, not sweet) and tastes like an orangeade-lemonade mash-up with a splash of pear juice and a pinch of white pepper. Or, think about it as a saison-witbier cocktail. Very light on the palate at 16 IBUs and light on the liver with the ABV at 5% . Maybe serve with a plate of fresh fruit or a Panko-crusted tilapia. A single included in my 4 pack for my August beer-of-the-month club from Bottle Revolution. I'd have another one of these.
[redacted] them and the horses they rode in on.

[devildeac]

Cold Brew-Saranac Brewery

Red Oak meets Starbucks/Caribou. It's an amber lager with coffee added. Aroma is a light to medium roast coffee. Color is medium amber. Head is small. Tastes are milk chocolate covered light caramel squares with a coffee bean inside. Pair with burgers, ribs and pulled pig. IBUs are 20 and ABV is 5.2%. Not quite "pass the cream and sugar," please, and not as good as Coffee Is for Closers or a coffee porter/stout, but a pleasant surprise and finish to my August beer club 4 pack.

[devildeac]

Edinbrüe-Brüeprint Brewing

Not the original Edinbrue, nor the BBA Edinbrue but this version of their Scotch Ale was aged in Cabernet Sauvignon barrels with Brettanomyces. So we have a dark amber ale with some ruby tinges that smells quite vinous with a whiff of vinegar and Bing cherries and tastes like a full-bodied, red wine that has been mixed with a generous aliquot of tart and sour cherry soda while you're nibbling on milk chocolate-covered toffee squares. Truly an outstanding ale that fuse was kind enough to search out a few weeks ago from his neighborhood brewery that set me back about $8 for a 500 ml bottle. I had 250 ml last PM and am letting the remaining portion warm a bit on the counter downstairs as I sip a Wicked Weed Napoleon Complex Pale Ale. The Edinbrue is probably about 30 IBUs and the ABV is a truly dangerous 9.5%. Forget pairing this with anything and sip by itself. (Well, if you insist, I guess I'd place this on the table with a medium rare 6 ounce filet mignon, a twice-baked or stuffed potato and some grilled asparagus.)

Double thanks for procuring that second bottle for me! I believe I'll cellar that one for 6-12 months.

[devildeac]

Breakfast (Well, not really as I had side dishes of scrambled eggs, sausage and toast. ):

I also shared two 4 beer samplers (4-5 oz each) with our son.

His:

Peach Cider-Ciderboys

Well, it's got alcohol and we don't have a Ymm, Cider thread .

Peach beer! Lotsa peach up front and with tasting. A mimosa with apple juice and peach schnapps!

[devildeac]

Stiff Arm-Land Grant Brewing

A piney-resiny IPA. Clear, yellow pour with a pine/resin lean. Reasonable balance with ABV of 6.7% and estimated IBUs of 60. Nice pairing with Breakfast #2 at Marshall's in Columbus, OH.

[devildeac]

Illusive Traveler Shandy

Not sure if this is the brewery, name or both.

I'm not a big shandy fan (Ycch, Leinienkugel's) but this was grapefruity and orangey and made a nice breakfast beverage at 4.4% and a guesstimated IBUs of 10.

[devildeac]

Switchblade-Four String

Third beer of my morning IPA sampler.

Yellow straw color and a lot more fruity than the White Rajah. Aromas and tastes of guava and papaya with a bit of pineapple. No IBUs listed so I'll guess a bit lower than the prior post at about 50. ABV was 6.5%.

[devildeac]

Citra Hero-Revolution

I should have researched all these beverages/brewers a bit more so I'll have to do that next time we visit Columbus.

This was my favorite of the samples. Orange-yellow with tropical aromas and tastes of mango, guava, papaya, pineapple, orange and a bit of caramel/light honey sweetness. Well-balanced IPA with ABV at 7.5% and estimated IBUs of 60-70. I'd order a pint of this if I found on draft.

[devildeac]

Howling Moon-Wolf's Ridge Brewing

Part of another sampler, this time for lunch . I split this 5 beer line-up ($12) with our son. When you read the ABVs, you'll understand

One of their entries into the DIPA category. Clean, light yellow hue with lots of fresh tropical fruit juiciness and honey and caramel notes. Almost sticky and oily. I'll venture 80 IBUs here and the ABV was 10% on the draft list and the booze was pretty apparent.

[devildeac]

Coconut Howling Moon-Wolf's Ridge

Their base recipe as in the prior post but loaded with coconut flavors, both on sniffing and sipping. I thought Coco Lopez . The tasting impressions from the prior post are similar but a bit subdued compared to the coconut presence, which was not over-powering but made it our #5 ranked beverage during this round. An interesting novelty DIPA but not one I'd re-visit.

[devildeac]

Big Vic-Elevator Brewing

One block away from Wolf's Ridge so an easy stumble, err, stroll down 4th Street after our high gravity sampler.

I split a pint with our son as we were calling a halt to beer that day. Pour received with a small, foamy, creamy head and aromas of pine and resin, which appeared to be a majority theme for my IPA/IIPA day yesterday. Reasonable balance but still fairly hoppy at 80 IBUs and potent, too, at 8.6% ABV. Not a bad beer but it's a difficult, competitive field in the US with many breweries producing DIPAs.

Posted out of order because the prior 3 samples to this one completed our big beer tasting at Wolf Ridge and they need to be posted consecutively. You'll see/read/understand why when we return home tonight after our ~9 hour journey. And yes, I will be thirsty again after the trip

[devildeac]

Dire Wolf (draft)-Wolf's Ridge Brewing

Their "base" imperial stout (you'll read why with reviews 2 and 3 ). Black as night, viscous as Valvoline, dark chocolate-y as Ghiradelli with a splash of espresso. I'll guess 60 IBUs with an ABV of 10.4%