Saint Arnold Fancy Lawnmower

In a trade with Jason from Texas, I received a bottle of Saint Arnold Fancy Lawnmower.The beer pours a golden color with a thin filmy white head. The aroma consists of grass, lemon, hay, and a hint of pepper. The taste is light bodied on the tongue and has a sweet toffee base with cracker flavor. There is plenty of grass and hay in this beer with a light lemon accent on the finish. The after taste leaves a bit of pepper, making this beer completely refreshing. The alcohol content is 4.9% ABV. This could easily become my “lawnmower beer” if I had access to it in regular distribution. It may be light and refreshing, but packs plenty of complex flavors and spices, making it all-around enjoyable.

Saint Arnold Christmas Ale

I received a bottle of Saint Arnold Christmas Ale from Jason in Texas as part of a beer trade. The beer pours an amber color with a frothy tan head. The aroma consists of cinnamon, nutmeg, and caramel. The taste is slightly sweet at first with a caramel base. Spice accents come in to play with some allspice, cinnamon, and nutmeg, drying out the mouth a little bit. The after taste is a bit of spruce and pine. The alcohol content is 7.0% ABV. This is a beer that would be great to introduce people to Christmas ales, as it is light-bodied and easy drinking. However, it has all the right spices and a nice sweet base for everyone to enjoy.

O'so Brewing Hopdinger

I received a bottle of O’so Brewing Hopdinger in a beer trade and was rather excited to try it. The beer pours an orange-amber color with a frothy white head that leaves some wet lacing on the glass. The aroma consists of bitter pine and lemony hops that appear to have a resin about them and a caramel background. The taste is also bittier and is very hop-forward with plenty of lemon, pine, tangerine, orange, and spruce. The finish brings out a caramel backbone with a slight sweetness and a peppery after taste lingers for a while. The alcohol content is 5.5% ABV. For a pale ale, this is one hell of a bitter and hop-focused beer, but it was completely amazing for a hop lover. There was plenty of citrus flavors and hop resins left behind on the tongue to keep this beer on your mind long after finishing it.

Pretty Things Hedgerow Bitter

While at McGrath’s in downtown Harrisburg, I ordered a bottle of Pretty Things Hedgerow Bitter. The beer pours an amber color with a frothy white head. The aroma consists of caramel, malts, and pepper. The taste is bitter on the tongue with lemon and a looming caramel base. There an intense bubbly mouth feel and a dry peppery finish with a grassy hop bite. The alcohol content is 5.4% ABV. I would say that the Hedgerow Bitter is slightly different than most bitters that I have had, as it is more carbonated. I wouldn’t attribute that to a good thing, and I think it hindered my experience with the beer, even though it had great flavor about it.

Mikkeller Beer Geek Brunch Weasel

While sharing beer with some friends, my buddy Matt popped open a bottle of Mikkeller Beer Geek Brunch Weasel. The fun story with this beer is that the coffee used is actually chewed and then excreted by the weasel-like civet cats before brewing. The beer pours a black color with a frothy tan head. The aroma is full of coffee and has some chocolate, toasted malts, nuts, and vanilla. The taste is dry and biting with dark and bitter coffee, some hints of vanilla, and a big alcohol bite that warms the soul. The alcohol content is 10.9% ABV. There are lots of dark flavors with a great bitter coffee bite in this beer and enough warmth to rock the soul.

Duck-Rabbit Marzen

My buddy Matt picked up a growler of Duck-Rabbit (worst brewery website I know of) Marzen for us all to share. The beer pours an amber color with a frothy off-white colored head. The aroma is malty and has some grassy hops and caramel accents as well. The taste is also malty with caramel and a spicy pepper accent with some grassy hops. The alcohol content is not posted online, but I would assume it to be approximately 5.0% ABV. Duck-Rabbit has crafted an excellent marzen with plenty of enjoyable spices providing an all-around enjoyable experience.

East End Monkey's Uncle

I picked up a bottle of East End Monkey’s Uncle and brought it over to my buddy Matt’s house to share with friends. The beer pours an amber color with a frothy off-white colored head with some lacing left on the glass. The aroma consists of wheat, caramel, and cherry, compiling an overall rather sweet aroma. The taste is very sweet with lots of malts and caramel, hints of cherry, and plenty of wheat in the backbone. There is a nice alcohol warmth on the finish with some peppery hops and a dry toasted caramel after taste. The alcohol content is 10.10% ABV. The Monkey’s Uncle was an amazingly tasty beer with a great sweetness and lots of warmth included.

Real Ale Brewing Company Phoenixx Double ESB

As part of a beer trade with Jason in Texas, I received a bottle of Real Ale Brewing Company Phoenixx Double ESB. The beer pours a dark amber color with a foamy off-white colored head. The aroma consists of lots of caramel, tangerine, grass, and raisin. The taste is smooth and lightly bitter with burnt caramel taking up a majority of the profile and some hints of raisin and orange. The finish brings out some funky grass and ragweed. The alcohol content is 7.2% ABV. This was my first double ESB, but I quite enjoyed it, especially the burnt caramel flavor that brings out quite a bitterness in the beer.

New Belgium Lips of Faith Grand Cru Abbey Ale

I ordered a bottle of New Belgium Lips of Faith Grand Cru Abbey Ale from France 44. The beer pours a red-tinted amber color with a bubbly off-white colored head. The aroma consists of sweet candy malts, cherry, caramel, raisin, and orange. The taste is very sweet with plenty of raisin, caramel, and malts hitting the tongue. There is a biscuit flavor that comes out with hints of cherry and orange. The finish is spiced a bit with some pepper and earthy hops. A faint hint of chocolate comes out in the after taste. The alcohol content is 9.5% ABV. I enjoyed the flavor of the Grand Cru Abbey Ale with it’s sweey, malty flavors and biscuity mouth feel. The finish was the best part, as the spice balanced out the sweetness.

Troegs Scratch 47- Wit (or Witout) Two

I stopped in to the Troegs tasting room to pick up a case of Scratch 47- Wit (or Witout) Two, a White Ale. The beer pours a pale yellow color with a very lofty and frothy white head that leaves some remnants of lacing on the glass. The aroma consists of lemon, pepper, wheat, and coriander. The taste is light and sweet with a nice lemon peel and coriander flavor right on the front end. A bit of orange and wheat also surface before a peppery and grassy hop finish comes out. The alcohol content is 4.2% ABV. Light and crisp, this beer is the definition of refreshing and has a wonderful citrus flavor

Short's Brew Beach Wheat

Another beer my friend Josh brought over to share was the Short’s Brew Beach Wheat. The beer pours a golden color with a thin filmy white head. The aroma consists of wheat, lemon, grass, and pepper. The taste is slightly sour and puckering with a large lemon profile. There is plenty of wheat flavor in the base and the finish has some peppery and grassy hops. The alcohol content is 5.0% ABV. On their own scale, this beer was rather tame for Short’s, but an excellent beer nonetheless. It was packed with lemon flavors and had a great refreshing quality about it.

Short's Brew Black Licorice Lager

My friend Josh brought over a bottle of Short’s Brew Black Licorice Lager to share. The beer pours dark brown color with a bubbly off-white colored head. The aroma consists of chocolate, licorice, and a hint of mint. The taste is big on licorice, spicy toasted malts, and lightly puckering, very similar to licorice candies. There are hints of chocolate and caramel in the background and a coffee and vanilla finish. The after taste brings licorice back and is wonderful. The alcohol content is 8.0% ABV. Admittedly, I really enjoy the flavor or licorice, and I think that Short’s was able to capture that flavor nicely in a bottle without being too overpowering, even though it was clearly the focus of the beer.

Mad Anthony IPA

My buddy Jason was in Indiana and called to ask if I wanted a six-pack of Mad Anthony Brewing Company IPA, so naturally I said yes. The beer pours an amber color with a frothy white head that leaves some lacing on the glass as it dissipates. The aroma consists of grapefruit, tangerine, sugar, orange, lemon, pine, and caramel. The taste is bitter at first with plenty of citrus flavors consisting of grapefruit, tangerine, orange, and lemon. There is a sweetness that comes out with sugar and caramel before turning bitter again on the finish with pine and spruce. The alcohol content is 6.5% ABV. This was a solid west coast IPA with lots of citrus flavors that attack the tongue without much interference from the caramel base, although the slight sweetness is much appreciated.