New Belgium Lips of Faith Prickly Passion Saison

My buddy Matt picked me up a bottle of New Belgium Lips of Faith Prickly Passion Saison and I opened it to share at our weekly bottle share. The beer pours a golden color with a bubbly white head the recedes rather rapidly. The aroma consists of passion fruit, pear, fruit cup, pineapple, and orange. The taste is fruity at first with passion fruit, pineapple, orange, pear, green apple, and a fruit cup. Then a cardboard funk comes out and has a hint of pepper. The alcohol content is 8.5% ABV. This beer didn’t hit any saison flavors on my tongue and really left a somewhat foul taste behind. I really wanted to like it, but the fruit flavors muddled the better flavors in the beer and made it very disappointing.

St. Boniface 3 LB IPA

My friend Tierney brought over a growler of St. Boniface 3 LB IPA to share at our weekly bottle share. The beer pours a golden color with a frothy and lofty white colored head. The aroma consists of pine, lemon, grapefruit, and tangerine. The taste is dry and bitter with a large citrus profile that has grapefruit, tangerine, orange, and lemon. The finish has some pepper and spruce to it, which is quite nice. The alcohol content is 6.0% ABV. This was a nicely hoppy beer with a base that provide a solid backbone, while allowing for the hops to shine.

DC Brau Brewing Oaked Penn Quarter Porter

In a beer trade with my buddy Michael, I received a bottle of DC Brau Brewing Oaked Penn Quarter Porter. The beer pours a black color with a thin bubbly tan colored head. The aroma consists of chocolate, caramel, cream, strong coffee, oak, and a hint of whiskey. The taste has a strong chocolate and cream base before lots of rye whiskey flavors take over. The alcohol bite is not there, but blends very well together. Coffee lingers in the finish before some oak dryness hits the tongue. The alcohol content is 5.5% ABV. The rye whiskey flavor in this beer blended very well with the strong chocolate and coffee base of the porter.

Brouwerij De Ranke Noir De Dottignies

My buddy Matt brought over a bottle of Brouwerij De Ranke Noir De Dottignies to share with me. The beer pours a dark brown color with a lofty and frothy white colored head that leaves a light lacing on the glass. The aroma consists of raisin, fig, malts, molasses, and caramel. The taste is dark and fruity with fig, raisin, and caramel on the front end. Hints of chocolate, toffee, and molasses shine through. On the finish, a white grape sweetness comes out with some toasted malts. The alcohol content is 9.0% ABV. This beer had some many complex flavors and was absolutely wonderful. It had a nice sweetness that was balanced with dry fruits and a nice toasted malt flavor.

Cigar City Cucumber Saison

For my July shipment from the Michael Jackson Rare Beer of the Month Club, I received a bottle of Cigar City Cucumber Saison. The beer pours a golden color with a very lofty and bubbly white colored head and leaves some specks of lacing on the glass. The aroma consists of fresh cucumber, lemon, pepper, wheat, and barnyard funk. The taste is dry and has a very strong and fresh cucumber flavor. There is a bite that comes along with it and a strong pepper spice. The finish has some lemon, coriander, and peppercorn. The alcohol content is 5.0% ABV. While this beer was very different, I absolutely loved it. It was fresh tasting and was like being in a springtime garden.

Lavery Brewing Liopard Oir

I picked up a bottle of Lavery Brewing Liopard Oir from Carson Street Deli in Pittsburgh while I was visiting. The beer pours a golden color with a frothy white colored head that leaves specks of lacing on the glass. The aroma consists of lemon, grass, barnyard funk, Brettanomyces, light tartness and pepper. The taste is dry and lemony with a light body. It has a peppery flavor with a Brett funk to it with a light tartness on the finish. The alcohol content is 4.8% ABV. This was a nice and funky farmhouse ale that brought some citrus, but was more memorable for the Brettanomyces content.

Lawson's Finest Liquids Double Sunshine IPA

In a beer trade with my friend Michael, I received a bottle of Lawson’s Finest Liquids Double Sunshine IPA. The beer pours a golden color with a thin frothy white colored head that leaves a little lacing on the glass. The aroma consists of tangerine, hop funk, marijuana, orange, grapefruit, caramel, and pepper. The taste is funky and hoppy, but not bitter. There is a marijuana flavor to it with plenty of citrus including orange, tangerine, and grapefruit. The finish sweetens a little with caramel and sweet lemon, but finishes peppery and grassy on the tongue. The alcohol content is 8.0% ABV. If I had to compare this to another beer, I would say Heady Topper. It is fresh, funky, and weed-like, just like Heady Topper. I loved every drop of it and would recommend it to anyone.

Duclaw eXile X-5 Sorachi Ace IPA

I picked up a bottle of Duclaw eXile X-5 Sorachi Ace IPA while at the release party at Al’s of Hampden. The beer pours a golden color with a frothy white head that recedes rapidly and leaves a nice lacing on the glass. The aroma consists of lemon, caramel, wheat, hop funk, and sorachi ace. The taste is spicy and bitter with lots of pepper, sorachi ace, and lemon on the front end. You can detect that there is a caramel and wheat background, but it never comes to the front, as the spiciness takes over this beer. The finish is dry and champagne-like, which is quite enjoyable. The alcohol content is 6.0% ABV. I loved this beer and can’t rave enough about it. It was similar to blending a farmhouse ale with an IPA, giving you hoppy and spicy all in one beer.

Lavery Brewing La Bealtaine White Fire Wheat Ale

While in Pittsburgh at Carson Street Deli, I picked up a bottle of Lavery Brewing La Bealtaine White Fire Wheat Ale. The beer pours a golden-yellow color with a lofty and frothy white head that leaves specks of lacing on the glass. The aroma consists of hop funk, lemon, wheat, grass, tangerine, orange, and pepper. The taste is light at first before a strong hop punch kick in and takes over. The hop flavor brings a funk and citrus flavors including lemon, orange, and tangerine. Pepper and spruce finish out the the beer with a grassy after taste. The mouth feel is very bubbly and champagne-like on the tongue. The alcohol content is 5.0% ABV. This was a wonderful wheat beer that packs a great hop punch, reminiscent of some of the beers I have received in the Rare Beer of the Month Club, but much cheaper.

Duclaw Anti-Venom

Another beer I ordered while at the Central PA release party for Duclaw was Anti-Venom. The beer pours an amber color with a frothy off-white colored head. The aroma consists of lemon, grapefruit, tangerine, orange, and caramel. The taste is bitter with a citrus explosion of orange, tangerine, lemon, and passion fruit. The alcohol content is 5.6% ABV. This was a wonderfully bitter and citrus-fueled beer that punished the palate just enough. I would definitely drink several of these in one sitting.

Duclaw Repent

I ordered a glass of Duclaw Repent while at the Central PA release party at Al’s of Hampden. The beer pours a dark amber color with a thin filmy white head. The aroma consists of raisin, fig, toffee, caramel, alcohol, and malts. The taste is sweet with raisin, fig, caramel, and toffee. There is a dry alcohol finish with banana and pepper flavors peeking through as well. The alcohol content is 14.6% ABV. This was bold, sweet, and delicious and I loved every second over it. As I tweeted the day of the release: Welcome to the Church of Duclaw. I shall Repent!

Duclaw Misfit Red

My fiancee ordered a glass of the Duclaw Misfit Red while at the Central PA release party of Duclaw at Al’s of Hampden, but wanted to get the Pineapple Mango Serum instead, so I took it off her hands. The beer pours a brown color with a thin filmy beige colored head. The aroma consists of toasted malts and caramel. The taste is full of toasted malts, smoke, caramel, and has a very dry finish that lingers for a while. The alcohol content is 5.1% ABV. I’m not sure if it was the other amazing beers on tap that day, but this beer seemed underwhelming to me and I had a difficult time finishing it. The rest of their beers that I tried were amazing, but I think I may pass on this one in the future.

Duclaw Pineapple Mango Serum on cask

Another beer I ordered at the Central PA release party of Duclaw at Al’s of Hampden was the Pineapple Mango Serum on cask. The beer pours an amber color with a bubbly off-white colored head. The aroma consists of pineapple, mango, passion fruit, and orange. The taste is bold and citrusy with lots of pineapple and mango flavors on the front end. Tangerine and orange also come through with a caramel backbone sweetness. A hint of pepper and pine come out on the finish. The alcohol content is 9.0% ABV. This was amazing and I couldn't say “wow” enough while drinking it. If you ever see this beer, ORDER IT!

Duclaw Caramel Apple Euphoria on cask

At the Central PA Duclaw release party at Al’s of Hampden, I ordered a glass of Caramel Apple Euphoria on cask. The beer pours a brown color with a bubbly off-white colored head. The aroma consists of caramel, apple, and toasted malts. Mostly, it smells pretty sweet and candy-like. The taste is sweet yet dry and toasty. Overall, it tastes just like the caramel apple lollipop, which I absolutely love. There is a hint of toasted malts in the background that show up on the finish. The alcohol content is 4.8% ABV. For the record, I love the caramel apple lollipops, so this beer was right down my alley.