Pretty Things November 15, 1901 KK

I ordered a glass of Pretty Things November 15, 1901 KK at Al's of Hampden. The beer pours a black color with a tan frothy head. The aroma consists of chocolate and licorice. The taste starts with chocolate but quickly transitions to a potent tobacco flavor, which was surprising and not very enjoyable. There is a light hop bite on the finish, but again the tobacco and ashtray flavor hit the mouth again. The mouth feel is bubbly on the tongue with the finish. The alcohol content is 7.8% ABV. I would not rank the November 15, 1901 KK as my favorite or anywhere near it. I thought the beer was bearable, but the tobacco and ashtray flavors were not very enjoyable.

Widmer Brothers Brrrbon

On a recent visit to Al's of Hampden, I ordered a glass of Widmer Brothers Brrrbon, which is barrel aged in bourbon barrels. The beer pours a copper color with a bubbly off white head. The aroma is malty with caramel and hints of bourbon. The taste is big and bold with lots of malts and caramel. The beer hits hard with bourbon and then the finish has a good helping of pine. The alcohol content is 9.4% ABV. I thought that the Brrrbon had a really good transition between malts and the bourbon accents, amounting to an overall delicious brew.

Southern Tier Hoppe Imperial Extra Pale Ale

I picked up a bottle of Southern Tier Hoppe Imperial Extra Pale Ale from Al's of Hampden. The beer pours a golden color with a frothy white head that sticks to the glass nicely. The aroma consists of caramel and toffee with lemon and pine accents. The taste is smooth and sweet with lots of caramel and toffee hanging on the tongue, a bit of toasted caramel, and a fresh lemon finish. There is a faint pale ale malt flavor, but it hides in the background behind the flowery accents that come along for the ride. The after taste is piney and lightly dry. The alcohol content is 8.0% ABV. The Hoppe is a very smooth drinking and sweet beer that is enjoyable through and through. It has a warming effect for the cooler fall days, while hanging on to the warmer summer months with the lemon and pine end to the beer.

Belhaven Twisted Thistle IPA

I stopped in to The Claddagh in Pittsburgh to meet up with a few friends visiting from Philadelphia. While there, I ordered a Belhaven Twisted Thistle IPA on draft. The beer pours a pale golden color with a frothy white head. The aroma is malty with a nice balance of sweet caramel and bitter hops. The taste has a big caramel backbone and a soft fresh hop bite, and the carbonation is just enough to tickle the tongue. The alcohol content is 5.3% ABV. Overall, the Twisted Thistle IPA was an amazing beer and it has a very delicate balance between caramel and hops.

East End Big Hop IPA

I stopped in to Buffalo Blues in Pittsburgh to help patronize their local food and beer initiative. At Buffalo Blues, they feature $3 East End Brewing Company drafts, making a visit completely worthwhile. I ordered a Big Hop IPA to go with my wings. The beer pours an orange color with a thin filmy white head. The aroma consists of caramel malts with fresh lemon and pine hops. The taste is bitter and piney with good lemon accents and a caramel backbone that waits to reveal itself. The beer finishes with a pine dryness. The alcohol content is 5.8% ABV. The Big Hop is a very delicious brew and a great IPA, especially at $3 a pint.

Weyerbacher Harvest Ale

While stopping in to Buffalo Blues in Pittsburgh for some East End beers, I also ordered a glass of Weyerbacher Harvest Ale. The beer pours an amber color with thin filmy white head. The aroma is faint but consists of light malts and fresh hops. The taste is malty with a good caramel and toffee base. Fresh earthy hops kick in but are complimentary and not overpowering. The alcohol content is 6.2% ABV. I really enjoyed the sweet backbone that comes with this beer and it was easy to tell that the goal of Weyerbacher was to balance that sweetness with the fresh hops, a task that they succeeded in completing.

Fat Head's Phantom Pumpkin

I made a special trip to Fat Head's in Pittsburgh on my last visit to the city for the Phantom Pumpkin, The beer pours an orange amber color with a thin filmy white head. The aroma consists of pumpkin and cinnamon with hints of nutmeg. The taste is light and malty with a surprising caramel base and a healthy helping of pumpkin. The beer dries a bit on the finish with cinnamon and an after taste of nutmeg. The alcohol content is 6.0% ABV. Fatheads has provided a very solid pumpkin beer without over-experimenting on it and it makes you think of Thanksgivings past when drinking it.