Ymm, Beer!

[devildeac]

From 9/23/16:

BA ReDANKulous (draft)-Founders Brewing

Another brewery-only special and I'm very glad I saved this to sip after my brat and German potato salad were consumed. They threw some of this (ReDANKulous):


"This bold, 9.5% imperial red IPA pours a pleasing burnt amber color. Caramalt and roasted barley introduce a subtle sweetness, but the hops are the true headliner in this big IPA. The spicy, piney and tropical complexities of Chinook, Mosaic and Simcoe hops hit you right away with their dank aroma – and they stick around. It’s not just ridiculous. It’s reDANKulous."

And turned it into this:

"*B.A. Redankulous is the last test batch of Redankulous before it became a Backstage beer in 2015, and won that nifty gold medal, and then aged in Oak Bourbon Barrels for 485 days. It gained a delightful bump up in ABV and pours a tad darker shade of reddish brown. Enjoy this Big ol’ B.A. Beauty!"

Damn, this was delightful. Nose of dark fruits and booze before a ruby-brown pour with no head. Tastes of dark, dried fruits, tart cherries, candied grapefruit slices and toasted, dark, wheat bread and a lot of bourbon. IBUs quoted by our server at 85 and the ABV on this is a stunning 12.5%. Forget food with this and send them an email to brew it again and put it into some 4 packs.

From about 10 days ago:

Dank Wood (brewed on 4/10/18)-Founders (cough, heineken, cough) Brewing Company

I thought this looked/sounded familiar when I passed it over the first time I saw it for about $17 for a 4 pack. I was sucked in the second time at $15 for the litter.

Searching out the review from our midwest beer-cation, err, Duke Football journey, about 18 months ago I discovered the above old review/s. Amazing prescience on my part (I wish I had actually sent the email and could take an ounce of credit for it. )

Three of us shared a 12 ounce bottle of this one evening as a nightcap. I think this is very close to the brew from 2016 WRT the color, aromas, mouthfeel and alcohol burn. This would also make a wonderful dessert beer, maybe with some bread pudding. Worth seeking out and buying a 4 pack with one for now and one every 6 months until the carrier is empty.

[devildeac]

From their house beers:

Exemption (I did not drink this.):

"Claim an Exemption, our abbey-style tripel. This crisp golden ale unites lemon, orange peel and coriander spices with flavorful Belgian esters. White wheat, oat and artisan malts contribute a balanced body, complemented by golden candi sugar."

From their Brewmaster Series:

Raspberry Ginger Exemption-Taxman Brewing Company

(I did drink this ale.)

Poured from a 12 ounce can into my oversized Ommegang tulip. Color was a gorgeous berry and was slightly cloudy (no chunks!) with a thin, fizzy head. Pungent berry aromas with a bit of spiciness. There's a bit of sour and a bit of sweet and and bit of heat and spice on the palate. The raspberries and lemon peel/zest lend the sour notes, the style (Belgian-style tripel) and candi sugar show up with the sweetness, the ginger gives some spice and heat and the Belgian yeast and coriander chip in with the spiciness. There's a bit of discrepancy with the IBUs as the website claims 55 (no way!) and the can has 36 which is more consistent with the style and the mouthfeel. ABV a dangerous 8.5%. A fruit plate before or after dinner would pair nicely as would a fruited/spicy salsa-topped tilapia filet. A very nice variation on the tripel style and much more palate-pleasing than the chunk and junk from the Passionfruit Guava La Maison farmhouse/saison ale.

[devildeac]

Husband-Trophy Brewing Company

Words never combined in a sentence uttered by Mrs. dd .

On the bottom of the can:

FIRST
4/19/18
HUSBAND

Funny stuff.

On the label:

"Cooks, Cleans and Never Complains"

Told ya the beer name doesn't exist with Mrs. dd.

Poured from a pint can (last remaining survivor of my May beer club 4 pack) into a standard pint glass with a bit of sipping to be sure it didn't overflow . Color was pale straw with a modest, foamy head. Smells like wet straw and lemongrass, about as expected as it's a pretty true-to-form saison. Tastes about as expected to match the scents along with some unripe apples and pears and a pinch of black pepper. This is really a "clean" beer. I'll guess IBUs about 20-30 and the ABV is 5.4%. Serve with some rosemary/sage grilled chicken and green beans or a grilled green tomato and pimento cheese sandwich on whole grain toast.

Trophy makes really good beers.

[devildeac]

I found most of a shelf of this at the new wine/beer shop that opened about 1.5 miles from us late last year. You've got two 4 packs waiting for you...

Key Lime Pie Gose-Westbrook Brewing Company

Poured a hazy, lemon-lime-pineapple yellow with a thin fizzy head that lingered a bit longer than I expected. Almost a Realime juice concentrate smell along with graham cracker and a hint of lemon. Tastes are more margarita than Key Lime Pie as the mildly salty flavors are at the forefront, followed by the sweetness and more graham crackers. I'll guess IBUs about 5 and the ABV is only 4% so it'd be real easy to belt down (at least) a couple of these on the beach or with a grilled shrimp/scallop/crab cake meal.

This is a pretty amazing beer.

[devildeac]

Southern Pecan-Lazy Magnolia Brewery

Mississippi's oldest brewery.

Our part-time nurse (Duke N-77) delivered a mixed 6er for my birthday this week and this was in the front of the fridge tonight.

Poured from a 12 ounce bottle into a standard pint glass. Dark amber (or was it light brown? ) with a small, short-lived head. Nutty scents and mild pecan, caramel and toasted bread tastes with some earthy/herbal hops. Mouthfeel was a bit thin. Minimal bitterness with IBUs of 19. ABV was 4.39% on the website and 4.5% on the label. I'm not gonna quibble . I'd have this with ribs or brisket and some smoked potato salad. There's a sweet potato stout on deck for tomorrow night...

[devildeac]

Grateful (brewed 9/10/17)-Starr Hill Brewery

Member #2 of my birthday gift last week from our part-time nurse.

An American pale ale

Pour was a slightly cloudy, pale straw color with a modest head. Nose of orange-grapefruit juice, light version. There's a bit of pine/resin to accompany the light caramel and citrus-y flavors and a mildly bitter, but not unpleasant finish. Burgers and grilled chicken would be happy with this beverage. Overall, an average brew, likely with some blame on the fact it was about 9 months old.

[devildeac]

Monumental IPA-Port City Brewing Company

Bottle #4 from my birthday gift 6er last week.

Poured a clean, light, golden-yellow with a small, foamy head. Mild citrus aromas with a hint of pine. There was some tangerine to accompany the grapefruit and orange flavors with pith, rind and a little resin. ABV was 6.3% with IBUs of 57 so decently balanced. Pretty pedestrian entry in a very crowded field.

[devildeac]

Anti Hero (filled on 4/25/18)-Revolution Brewing

Buy local! (drink when you return home )

Twelve pack of 12 ounce cans bought earlier this month visiting younger daughter and her husband on the south side of Chicago. Never made it to the brewery at either location. Maybe in September.

Pour was a light copper with a small, foamy head. Interesting aromas with a mixture of orange rind, pine and some tangerine. Tasting scale is tipped toward bitterness with some resin/oil along with more orange rind and tangerine. IBUs are 67 and the ABV is 6.5%. I'd pair this with a Chicago/Italian beef sandwich with a small side of giardiniera. From their website:

"Our flagship IPA is supremely aromatic, crisp, and drinkable. This iconic ale features a blend of Citra, Crystal, Centennial, and Chinook to create a crisp clean bitterness and imparts massive floral and citrus aromas."

I perceive more Crystal, Centennial and Chinook hops (IOW, bitterness) than the Citra variety but am looking forward to the single hop Citra version tomorrow night.

[devildeac]

Centennial Hero (filled 4/26/18)-Revolution Brewing

Buy local! (and bring home to consume )

Second hero member of the 12 pack, divided equally among devildeacs 1 and 2 and fuse.

Twelve ounce can poured into a shaker pint glass. Color was golden-yellow, a bit lighter than the Anti Hero, with a similar head. Stone fruit flavors with more stone than fruit () along with some earthy/herbal/piney hops. Stats come in a shade above Anti Hero at 70 IBUs and 7% ABV. This one might be better with a medium hot Italian sausage with some grilled peppers and onions. So far, a tie with Anti-Hero and Centennial Hero. Still looking forward to more fruity/citrusy IPAs tomorrow night with the Citra and Mosaic Heroes.

[devildeac]

From 8/27/16:

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.

From tonight:

Citra Hero (filled 4/26/18)-Revolution Brewing

Buy local (on vacation)! Drink at home!

Well, the search feature yielded this as the only Citra Hero post because I guess fuse didn't drink/review his yet from the devildeacs' Chicago trip earlier this month.

This was a 12 ounce can from the recently purchased 12 pack League of Heroes and divided 3 ways. Same color with perhaps a pineapple-forward bouquet but tastes pretty similar to the above, again with pineapple being the most prominent. The ABV is indeed 7.5% and the IBUs were as I thought with the website stating 65. Here's part of their description:

"We utilized 2-row, Pale Ale, Red Wheat and Belgian Aromatic malts to provide a deep golden color and clean malt profile for this hoppy ale. Multiple additions of Citra in the brew kettle infuse this beer with deep layers of citrus aroma and flavor and a clean, crisp yet intense bitterness. After primary fermentation with our English Ale Yeast we dry-hopped with one pound per barrel of Citra once again to really load this ale up with a burst of fresh citrus fruit."

Would have another of these any time.

[devildeac]

Lemon Cucumber Gose-Westbrook Brewing Company

I bought a case of the Westbrook Key Lime Pie Gose to share with our son and fuse so the owner of the relatively new bottle shop near our house asked if I liked the style (D'oh!) and ran to the back room for his new shipment and gave me a 12 ounce can of this to try in appreciation for a full case purchase.

Poured somewhat aggressively into a standard pint glass with the results of a cloudy appearance and a smallish, foamy head that lingered for several minutes. Unmistakable aromas of ReaLemon juice. Moderately high pucker factor and salinity with a faint vegetable flavor that I probably wouldn't have guessed/perceived without the obvious name of the beer . I'll guess IBUs around 5-10 with the standard low ABV of 4%. Good beer for a warm summer evening. I like their Key Lime Pie Gose better but this is a high quality, distinctive effort.

[devildeac]

Majestic Mullet (parked on 4/10/18-yes, that's really printed on the label )-Parkway Brewing Company

Beer #1 from my June beer club 4 pack

This Krispy Kölsch (from the label and website) is one of their year round offerings. Poured from a 12 ounce bottle (really? a bottle? ) into a standard pint glass. Color was straw-yellow with a modest, foamy head. It has grainy, cereal smells with a mild floral bitterness that is interwoven with Life cereal, light corn syrup and biscuit-y tastes. IBUs are a bit high for the style (I think) at 28 and the ABV is 5.6%, also a tad high. Would be very tasty with a turkey and provolone sandwich on some toasted whole grain bread with a slice of tomato). A nice inclusion that I'd likely not purchase individually but would find pleasant again in a flight at the brewery.

[devildeac]

From 8/4/17:

Wisconsin Belgian Red-New Glarus Brewing

Well, it is a Belgian-style ale so Happy International Beer Day to all and a tip of the glass to Tripping William for his heads up.

Fuse and I have reviewed this any number of times but it's worthy of another short posting. I keep wondering when I'll ever tire of this (or any) NG fruit ales. I hope it's never.

Pour was a fizzy, cherry-brown color with a small, quickly-disappearing head. Smells like cherry juice and tastes like cherry champagne with slight woody, sour, brown sugary finish. Minimal bitterness, guessing 10-20 IBUs. ABV is 5-6%. Mrs. dd even had a half a champagne flute of this without her usual facial contortions () and I had half a red wine glass serving to accompany our dinner of Schweinebraten, Kartoffelpüree mit Speck und Käse und grüne Bohnen, keeping with the International theme .

From tonight:

Wisconsin Belgian Red-New Glarus Brewing

This one's easy and worth repeating/re-posting. Read above.

Seriously, this continues to be an amazing fruit ale. It's now available in 4 packs of 12 ounce bottles for about $10+ tax, a better drop than the $10-12 for the 750 ml format. I think the only other item that has changed is that it's now 4% ABV, more in line with a traditional Belgian lambic.

It's also Independence Day so this was the red...

[devildeac]

Imperial Weizen-New Glarus Brewing

Poured from a 12 ounce bottle into a 2.5 ounce Ommegang mini-pilsner glass (it was beer cocktail night so I tasted the Wisconsin Belgian Red and this separately, then together as a "cherry-wh*at" cocktail with 2.5 ounces of each).

Light, clear, golden-yellow color with a nice, lacy head. I got more orange than lemon on the nose and more clove than banana, too. The "acid" description is on-target and I picked up some orange rind in addition to the typical weiß flavors of clove and banana. Fuse is indeed correct again mentioning the "assertively" hopped wh*eat beer. I'll guess IBUs 30-40 here and ABV in the 8-9% range (NG quotes neither). It reminds me of some wh*atwines I've bought (as opposed to barleywines).

Intriguing is the correct word. Very, very good and I'm also really looking forward to my 2 remaining bottles (a family member got the 4th one).

[devildeac]

Space Dust (27Mar18 stamped on label)-Elysian (cough, InBev, cough) Brewing Company

I had high hopes for this one. I'll blame the Brazilians .

This was a 12 ounce bottle ($2.50 on sticker on bottom of bottle) that was part of my gifted birthday 6er last month.

Pour was a light, golden-yellow with a modest, foamy head. Resinous aromas with similar tastes, along with some grapefruit, rind and soap (sadly). Finish is rather bitter with little malty/caramel-y sweetness. IBUs are 73 with ABV of 8.2% so solidly in IIPA territory. Here are some of the players:

Malts: Pale, C-15, DextraPils
Hops: Chinook, Citra and Amarillo

Not one I'd re-visit.

[devildeac]

Beer cocktail (from Independence Day):

Wisconsin Belgian Red and Imperial Weizen-New Glarus Brewing

The red and the weizen here with the blue to follow in the next post.

I had noble intentions (thinking cherry wh*at ale here) with blending 2.5 ounces of each of these. Twice. Happily, I was able to finish each individual product separately.

Both beers are excellent as stand alones but the combination of the wood-aged cherry beer, combined with the orange, banana and spicy notes of a Cascade dry-hopped, high gravity weizen simply didn't tickle my taste buds. Not a bad combination but the New Glarus fruit ales we blended after Christmas last year (IIRC), were much more palate-pleasing. They included various combinations of Wisconsin Belgian Red, Raspberry Tart and Serendipity, a cranberry-cherry-apple ale.

[devildeac]

Blueberry Gose-Destihl Brewery

From their Wild Sour Series, this 12 ounce can was included in my June beer club 4 pack and finished my red, weiz-en blue patriotic beer day on July 4.

Appearance was blueberry fruit pulp color (purplish-red) and not blueberry skin color. There was a modest, fizzy head that disappeared pretty quickly. Mildly salty, spicy and fruity nose. First taste was saline, followed by sour, sweet, berry and spicy perceptions. Do Warheads or Sour Patch Kids come in blueberry/lemon-lime flavors? Does Simply Lemonade make a blueberry/raspberry/lemon-limeade concoction? IBUs of 11 (some goses are <10). ABV was 5.2% (some are <4%). Interesting pairings before or after dinner might be fruit salad or tart, respectively. Might make a nice match with a sweet and sour entree. Nowhere near the face-melting pucker of their Flanders Red and I've not had any other of their sours with which to compare the Blueberry Gose. I'd certainly sip one again if offered and their Wild Pack (triplets of 4 different brews) would be tempting to buy if anyone wished to leap into the sour world of beers.

[devildeac]

Stone Soup-New Glarus Brewing Company

A bit embarrassing that it took me this long to consume my first Stone Soup .

Pour was a light, golden-straw with a modest, fluffy head.

Yep, it's immediately bubble gummy, then the expected clove and banana aromas. Clove and banana re-appear while tasting then I thought there was a bit of orange on the palate, too. I'll have to re-taste Charleston Chews to reach that far . I misinterpreted the label when it stated Abbey style ale and equated that with a dubbel. It's certainly not a dubbel and and one of fuse's other reviews of this thought this resembled a cross between a hefe and a Belgian single and that's an excellent description. I'll guess IBUs about 20 and the ABV is 5.3% (from beeradvocate). Looking forward to my second one soon and then trading/sharing a couple or three from my 6er.

[devildeac]

Tropical Storm IPA-Saranac/F. X. Matt Brewing

Beer #3 from my June beer club 4 pack.

Their web site claims a hazy IPA but it's not quite in the category I've come to expect for the hazy IPAs/NEIPAs but the 12 ounce bottle pour was slightly cloudy with a small, creamy head. Tropical fruit salad aromas, mainly guava and pineapple with nearly identical similar tastes with a bit of guava bitterness. No pine! IBUs at 50 and ABV at 5.5% so it's in a strange zone of being "stronger" and more bitter/hoppy than a session IPA but not quite in the standard IPA range. It's not hazy enough and the ABV is a bit too low to be a NEIPA. I certainly would not purchase a 15 pack of this as part of their marketing strategy but am satisfied with its inclusion in my 4 pack and would have another. It'd pair well with sweet and sour entrees of a fruited/salsa-ed grilled fish.

[devildeac]

Ekuanot Pale (draft)-FlyBoy Brewing

Drink local (Tigard, Oregon)!

Two ounce sample before dinner. Hey, the waitress offered and brought the wrong sample. Somebody had to drink it.

Yellow-straw pour, small head, vinous aromas and tastes along with some mild citrus flavors. Minimal bitterness. I'll guess 30 IBUs and chalk board said 6.4% ABV. I'd taste this again.