Blue Moon Rising Moon

I participated in a mixed case trade, in which I get two of twelve different types of beers. The first beer I tried out of the case was Blue Moon Rising Moon. The beer pours a light golden color with a lofty foamy head and lots of carbonation bubbles. The aroma consists of wheat with light hints of lime. The taste is mostly wheat an d is very doughy and lots of biscuit flavors. There is somewhat of a dry finish that has a light fresh lime accent. The alcohol content is 5.6% ABV. I wasn't thoroughly impressed with the beer, and it was not very complex and I'd say the finish wasn't completely satisfying. I'd drink it again on a warm day if it was given to me, but I wouldn't go out and buy it again.

Stone Sublimely Self-Righteous Ale

McGrath's in Harrisburg tapped a keg of Stone Sublimely Self-Righteous Ale and I quickly ordered a glass, as my love for Stone Brewing Company has grown exponentially this year. The beer pours a dark brown color with a foamy tan head. The aroma consists of toasted malts, chocolate, and a good amount of citrus hops. The taste is toasted malts with grapefruit finish. There is also a healthy dose of chocolate and coffee, but the bitterness is eliminated by the citrus hops. The alcohol content is 8.7% ABV. The beer was surprisingly hoppy, but overall very delicious. The hops in the beer were excellent, and the chocolate and grapefruit really played nicely together.

Troegs Scratch 29- Belgian Style India Pale Ale

I rushed to the Troegs brewery to pick up a case of Scratch 29 Belgian Style India Pale Ale. The beer pours a golden color with a lofty foamy and bubbly white head. The aroma is filled with banana and pepper with a light hint of citrus. The taste is filled with banana and pepper, with a nice meringue finish. The hops are a perfect accent to this beer and there are lingerings of oak flavors. The alcohol content is 7.7% ABV. As much as Troegs tried to shy away from this being a "Belgian" beer, I think that they nailed the style perfectly. The banana and pepper flavors hit perfect notes as the hops rounded out the flavors. Also worth noting is that this is Troegs' first bottle conditioned beer, so I expect to see more of those in the future.

Ballast Point Big Eye IPA

McGrath's in Harrisburg recently tapped a keg of Ballast Point Big Eye IPA, so I decided to order a glass. The beer pours an amber color with a lofty foamy white head. The aroma contains floral smells and pine. The taste is lemon and orange citrus with a pepper hop finish. There is also a hint of tangerine in there. The beer is really clean and fresh and also has a light caramel undertone. The alcohol content is 7.0% ABV. I thought that this was an excellent IPA without anything being overdone. The hops weren't overpowering, but were also plentiful.

Stoudt's Karnival Kolsch

I picked up a case of Stoudt's Karnival Kolsch for poker night at my house, knowing I needed to have a lighter beer for my coworkers to enjoy. The beer pours a straw color with a bubbly white head. The aroma is sweet and malty with light hops in the background. The taste is sweet and malty with a bit of grapefruit in there. The beer has a lightly dry hop finish. The alcohol content is 4.8% ABV. I though that Stout's has provided an excellent example of a Kolsch, and I highly recommend this beer for the summer. Everyone at poker seemed to enjoy it as well, so it would be a great beer to serve those that do not typically indulge in craft beer.

RJ Rockers First Snow Ale

When I was in South Carolina, I picked up a bottle of RJ Rockers First Snow Ale. I decided to open it on one of the cooler evenings of spring and I could use a little bit of warming up. The beer pours a surprisingly pale yellow color with a bubbly white head. The aroma has a lot of nutmeg and cinnamon. The taste is smooth and sweet with honey and malts at first and finishes with a nutmeg flavor and a cinnamon dryness. The alcohol content is 6.0% ABV. All in all, it was a decent beer with good spices and a nice sweetness of honey. I wasn't expecting a winter beer to be so light colored, but you shouldn't judge a beer by its color.

Allagash Tripel Ale Reserve

Another beer that I was given for providing IT assistance to my friend's parent was the Allagash Tripel Ale Reserve. I have previously had the Tripel, but not the Tripel Reserve. The beer pours a pale yellow color with a lofty foamy white head. The aroma is filled with banana and pepper. The taste follows the aroma and is full of banana and pepper with a nice alcohol bite on the back of the mouth. The alcohol content is 9.0% ABV. I thought that the Tripel Reserve was delicious and refreshing, and was also a little dry due to the spice.

Rogue Somer Orange Honey Ale

I was given a bottle of Rogue Somer Orange Honey Ale for the IT assistance that I provided to my friend's parents. The beer pours a pale yellow color with a bubbly white head. The aroma is full of wheat and light orange citrus. The beer is very light bodied and tastes sweet with honey at first and a light coriander spice. There is a good amount of wheat flavor and the beer finishes with an orange citrus taste. There is a light hint of honey on the back of the tongue. The alcohol content is 5.2% ABV. I thought the beer was heavily carbonated, and maybe a bit too much, but it was a light and refreshing beverage.

Stone Double Bastard

I was given a bottle of Stone Double Bastard for providing some IT support to the parents of a friend (I should work for beer more often). This was the 2009 release. The beer pours a cloudy brown color with a frothy tan head. The aroma has caramel and toffee with light fresh hops. The taste is full of caramel and toffee and has plenty of sweetness. The Double Bastard has a a dry, lightly hoppy finish and a bit of a pepper bite on the back corners of the mouth. The hops are very complimentary and balancing rather than in you face. The alcohol content is 10.5% ABV. I thought that this was a very delicious brew and I would like to get a few more bottles of the Double Bastard.

Sierra Nevada 2010 Bigfoot Barleywine Ale

I picked up a bottle of Sierra Nevada 2010 Bigfoot Barleywine Style Ale from Ron's Original Bar & Grille in West Chester. The beer pours a copper color with a frothy white head. The aroma consists of caramel and light fresh hops. The taste is fresh hops on the front end and has a light citrus lemon taste followed with some caramel accents. There are some flower tastes on the finish. The alcohol content is 9.6% ABV. I really enjoyed the Bigfoot. It may be a little hoppier than most barleywines, but it was a great variation on the style and extremely complex.

Spring House B-Sides Double IPA

I picked up a bottle of Spring House B-Sides Double IPA at TJ's in Paoli. The beer pours a copper color with a bubbly white head that sticks to the glass a bit. The aroma smokey and has hints of cedar. The taste is very malty and somewhat peppery on the front, but it turns to be very smokey with a caramel undertone and a very faint citrus hint. I also detected some apricot as the beer warmed up. I couldn't locate an alcohol content online, but I would assume it to be around 9.0% ABV. This was a very interesting take on a Double IPA. I definitely did not hate it, but I though the smokiness might have gotten in the way of the citrus sweetness in the beer.

Breckenridge Vanilla Porter

I picked up a bottle of Breckenridge Vanilla Porter when I was in South Carolina. The beer pours a dark amber color and has a bubbly tan head. The aroma consists of chocolate with light hints of vanilla. The taste is very chocolaty but has an excellent dose of vanilla flavor. The vanilla helps add a creamy finish to the beer. The alcohol content is 4.75 ABV. I thought that this beer was thoroughly delicious and satisfying, with great flavors of chocolate and vanilla.

Flying Dog Garde Dog Biere de Garde

I picked up a bottle of Flying Dog Garde Dog Biere de Garde when I was in South Carolina. The beer pours a straw gold color with a bubbly white head. The aroma is fresh and has wheat hints with a faint hop smell. The taste is lightly malty with a slight butter finish. There are remnants of hops hit the side of the mouth with carbonation bubbles. The alcohol content is 5.5% ABV. I thought that this was rather tasty Biere de Garde and was very refreshing.

Stoudt's Double IPA

Another beer I ordered at TJ's in Paoli was Stoudt's Double IPA. The beer pours an amber color with a bubbly white head. The aroma is citrus and floral. The taste is very smooth and sweet, even more smooth than expected from a Double IPA. The flavors are delicate and not overpowering, balancing citrus sweetness with a light hop bite. The alcohol content is 10.0% ABV. The Double IPA from Stoudt's was very delicious and I thought it was not a typical double IPA. It wasn't intense as most are, but it was very enjoyable.

Urthel Hop-It

At TJ's in Paoli, I ordered a glass of Urthel Hop-It. The beer pours a golden color with a bubbly white head. The aroma is floral and banana and pepper. The taste follows the aroma with a nice dose of banana and pepper. The finish on the beer has a good hop bite. The alcohol content is 9.5% ABV. I thought that the Hop-It was delicious and also was really refreshing. It isn't too heavy-bodied, so it will work well on a summer day.