Great Divide 16th Anniversary Wood Aged Imperial IPA

I stopped into Al's of Hampden to pick up a growler of Great Divide 16th Anniversary Wood Aged Imperial IPA. The beer pours an orange amber color with a bubbly white head. The aroma consists of caramel, toffee, grapefruit, and sugar. The taste is sweet and smooth with a heavy dose of caramel with some grapefruit. There is a good oak accent that dries out the beer. The alcohol content is 10.0% ABV. This beer was a very delicious brew with decent hop finish and great oak accent. Overall, I thought it was very well done and I hope to be able to get some more of this before it's gone.

Avery 17 (Dry Hop)

While at Al's of Hampden to pick up a growler of the mmmMaharaja, I decided to give the Avery 17 (Dry Hop) a try. The beer pours a black color with think bubbly tan head. The aroma consists of roasted malts with chocolate. The taste is roasted malts and bitter dark chocolate with a good dry hop finish. The finish actually stings and dries the tongue. The alcohol content is 8.69% ABV. The 17 (Dry Hop) was a really good beer that delivers chocolate taste without the heavy feeling. I thought it also had a surprising but yet balancing hop finish.

Avery Maharaja

I stopped in to Al's of Hampden to grab a growler of Avery Maharaja to watch a Union match. The beer pours golden amber color with a lofty foamy white head. The aroma consists of lemon and pepper with a light grapefruit accent. The taste is smooth and round with a good lemon punch. The beer finishes with some grapefruit flavors, and orange punch, and a warm caramel base. The alcohol content is 10.3% ABV. The caramel and alcohol have a nice way of warming the throat. The hops are definitely not overdone in this beer, but are meant to balance the sweetness. I highly recommend this beer, even if you don't love hops.

Smuttynose Barleywine Style Ale

I picked up a bottle of Smuttynose Barleywine Style Ale from Brass Rail in Campbelltown, PA. I thoroughly enjoyed the Gravitation brew from the BIG BEER series, so I was anxious to try the Barleywine. The beer pours an orange amber color with a foamy white head with some noticeable lacing. The aroma consists of orange, coriander, lemon zest, and a background of caramel and toffee. The taste is powerful is sweet, hitting first with a sweet orange punch and a powerful caramel and toffee base. The lemon comes in on the finish and a nice pepper and pine accent hits the back of the tongue. The alcohol content is 10.0% ABV. The barleywine was perfectly balanced, and the fruitiness was very welcomed as well. The orange and lemon kept the sweet caramel and toffee in check, and made for an excellent drinking beer, of which the alcohol content wasn't overly noticeable.

Dogfish Head Namaste

I stopped into TJ's in Paoli upon reading their tweet that they had bottles of Dogfish Head Namaste in stock. When I walked in, there was one bottle left, so I snatched it up right away. The beer pours a cloudy and unfiltered yellow color with a lofty foamy white head. The aroma consists of a heavy helping of lemongrass with wheat, orange, and coriander accents. The taste is light and refreshing, starting out with a wheat flavor and a good helping of carbonation. The flavor then transforms into lemongrass and coriander. The beer finishes clean with an orange accent and a faint sour hop bite. The alcohol content is 5.0% ABV. If you are looking for a light summer beer that is also complex, Namaste is the beer for you. It comes with multiple taste levels that will keep your tongue happy, but light and refreshing to drink outside in the sun.

General Lafayette Inn The Phantom

Another beer I ordered on my most recent visit to the General Lafayette Inn was The Phantom, their barleywine. The beer pours a brown amber color with a little bubbly tan head. The aroma is malty with toffee and caramel smells. The taste is toffee and caramel with a good scotch accent. The beer finishes with pine hops and a big alcohol kick. The alcohol content is 12.2% ABV. The Phantom was awe-inspiring and one of the best barleywines I have ever had. It was extremely sweet, but not in a manner that ruined the flavor, and had an amazing alcohol kick that teamed with a pine hop punch. If you are in the Philadelphia area, get to General Lafayette Inn and order one of these beers.

General Lafayette Inn Loch Ness Monster

I visited the General Lafayette Inn following a Union match for dinner and drinks. The first beer I ordered for the evening was the Loch Ness Monster. The beer pours a dark amber color with a thin bubbly tan head. The aroma is sweet with caramel, licorice, and chocolate. The taste is malty and sweet with a chocolate and licorice finish. The alcohol content is 8.5% ABV. The Loch Ness Monster was extremely smooth and delicious and was a perfect starter beer for the evening.

Monk's Cafe Sour Flemish Ale

Another beer I ordered on draft from Cafe Bruges in Carlisle was Monk's Cafe Sour Flemish Ale. The beer pours a red-purple-amber color with a foamy white head that is very thick. The aroma is sweet and fruity with a good bit of raspberry. The taste is sweet and lightly sour, mostly consisting of raspberry and grape. The alcohol content is 5.5% ABV. I though that the Sour Flemish Ale was very good and smooth drinking, and when I drank it I though that it tasted a little bit like church.