Brooklyn Companion

I was sitting in Al’s of Hampden when they tapped Brooklyn Companion, so I ordered a glass without hesitation. The beer pours an orange-tinted amber color with a very thin filmy white head. The aroma is fruity and yeasty and consists of banana, raisin, and fig. The taste has some tea leaves, banana, raisin, fig, grassy hops, and pepper. The alcohol content is 10.0% ABV, but it is masked very well. I enjoyed this example of a wheatwine and the first thing I noticed was how fruity it was, but I think the tea and pepper balanced out the sweetness nicely.

North Coast Old Rasputin

While at Al’s of Hampden, I noticed that he had North Coast Old Rasputin on tap, and having only had it at a beer festival, I decided to order it. The beer pours a black color with a filmy tan head. The aroma consists of dark chocolate, pine hops, pepper, and cream. The taste is smooth with a deep and dark chocolate flavor while being dry and bitter due to pine and spruce hops. There is some cream and caramel that comes out in the finish accompanied with an alcohol dryness and warmth. The alcohol content is 9.0% ABV. I thoroughly enjoyed this Russian Imperial Stout, as it had a great chocolate base and a wonderful spicy and peppery warmth to it. This is a perfect example of the style.

Brasserie de Cazeau Saison Cazeau

As part of Michael Jackson’s Rare Beer of the Month Club, I received a bottle of Brasserie de Cazeau Saison Cazeau. The beer pours a vibrant golden color with a very lofty and foamy white colored head. The aroma consists heavily of lemon, meringue, hay, barnyard fun, hay, pepper, and grass. The taste is smooth and lemony with a quick bite of pepper. The finish provides a nice funkiness with some horse blanket and barnyard funkiness about it. There is a bit of meringue after taste that sweetens up everything before a grassy flavor lingers. The alcohol content is 5.0% ABV. This is one of the best saisons that I have ever had. It has a great lemon and funky taste with plenty of grassy accents.

Crooked Stave Pure Guava Petite Sour

My fiancee encouraged my to pick up a bottle of Crooked Stave Pure Guava Petite Sour while we were in Denver. The beer pours a a golden color with a lofty white head that leaves very little lacing on the glass. The aroma consists of sweet guava, vinegar, wheat, hay, and grass. The taste is very puckering with plenty of vinegar right on the front end before the guava sweetness comes out to play. There is a wheat finish with some hay and grass mixed in as well. The alcohol content is 4.5% ABV. I really enjoyed the nice pucking aspect of this beer with the sweet guava undertone. The finish brought out the hay and grass with a great wheat accent.

Mikkeller Barrel-Aged Black Hole Series (Part III)

I picked up a bottle of Mikkeller Black Hole aged in Cognac barrels while in Denver to complete the series of reviews and decided to share it with my buddy Adam. The beer pours a black color with a lofty and frothy tan head with some lacing on the glass, a similar trait when compared to the previously reviewed beers in the series. The aroma consists of sweet cognac, chocolate, oak, vanilla, toasted malts. The taste is dry and very cognac-forward with a bit of chocolate and vanilla sweetness. There is a dry alcohol infused finish with some oakiness. The alcohol content is 13.1% ABV. I believe that the Cognac version of the Black Hole may have been my favorite, as the alcohol was right on the front end but not too heavy handed, and it provided a nice warming dryness.

Iron Hill Rauchtoberfest

I stopped in to Iron Hill Lancaster to sign up for the mug club and pick up some pumpkin beer bottles. While there, I ordered a glass of Rauchtoberfest. The beer pours a dark brown color with a frothy cream colored head. The aroma consists of roasted malts, caramel, grass hops, and a hint if smoke. The taste is roasted malts with a soft and slightly dry smokiness and a sweet and smooth caramel base. Some grass comes out in the finish along with a hint of salt. The alcohol content is 6.0% ABV. The waitress cautioned that this beer was rather smoky, but I thought that the smoke was subtle and not overpowering. I highly recommend this beer, as the smoke provides a nice balance to the caramel sweetness.

Boulder Cold Hop

On the way out of Denver, I decided to kill time at the Boulder Tap House in the airport, and I ordered a glass of the Cold Hop. The beer pours an amber color with a frothy off-white colored head. The aroma is bitter with pine, lemon, grass, caramel smells. The taste is fresh with lots of pine hop goodness, some nice oils, and a caramel backbone. The finish is smooth and slightly bitter with some pepper. The alcohol content is 6.8% ABV. I enjoyed the freshness of this beer, and I feel like it trump those light beer commercial asking you to drink cold and fresh beer. This was smooth and easy drinking, but with plenty of flavor.

Terrapin-Shmaltz A Beer for Hope Reunion Ale ‘11

I picked up a bottle of the Terrapin-Shmaltz collaboration A Beer for Hope Reunion Ale ‘11 from Giant Eagle in Pittsburgh.  The beer pours a black color with an extremely lofty and frothy head that leaves plenty of lacing on the glass. The aroma consists of sweet and dark chocolate nibs, vanilla, oak, toasted malts, and a chili spiciness. The taste is smooth and roasty with dark chocolate nibs that are quickly taken over by spicy chilies. Hints of vanilla and oak shine through, but a peppery spice that warms the throat comes out in full force in the finish. The after taste has a pairing of milk chocolate and a Tobasco-like spice. The alcohol content is 7.6% ABV. This was a wonderfully spiced chocolate beer that was balanced well and not overly hot, but did not have a nice kick on top of chocolate and vanilla sweetness. However, one glass was more than enough for me and I found it difficult to drink an entire 22-ounce bottle.

Hoppin' Frog Frog's Hollow Pumpkin Ale

While at Giant Eagle in Pittsburgh, I picked up a bottle of Hoppin’ Frog Frog’s Hollow Pumpkin Ale. The beer pours an orange-amber color with a frothy cream colored head that fades rather rapidly. The aroma consists of sweet pumpkin, dry cinnamon, nutmeg, a hint of allspice, and cream. The taste is smooth and sweet at first with plenty pumpkin up front before some dryness comes in to play with cinnamon and nutmeg. There is an allspice finish before some caramel sweetens up the finish. The alcohol content is 8.4% ABV. The spices in this beer are present, but are mostly used to balance out the sweetness of the pumpkin. There is plenty of pumpkin flavor in this beer, and it was much appreciated.

Bull and Bush Black Coast IPA

My friends and I went to dinner at Bull and Bush in Denver and I decided to order their Black Coast IPA, a black IPA. The beer pours a black color with a frothy tan head that leaves lacing on the glass. The aroma consists of chocolate, lemon, and pepper. The taste is bitter with lemon, toasted malts, and a  chocolate roundness that balances out everything. There is a peppery finish with pine that dries out the mouth a little bit and puts some spice on the back of the tongue. The alcohol content is not available online, but I would estimate it to be about 6.5% ABV. I would put this beer as a solid performer in the category. It's not the standard bearer or as intense as Stone's 15th Anniversary, but it was quite enjoyable and went very well with the honey-bourbon-chipotle wings that we ordered as an appetizer.

Dogfish Head 120 Minute IPA Through a Watermelon

On the same night that Al’s of Hampden poured glasses of Founders Canadian Breakfast Stout, Al decided to run Dogfish Head 120 Minute IPA through a watermelon. I’ll pause a moment to let that sink in to your brain. Dogfish Head. 120 Minute IPA. In an actual watermelon. While it may fringe on lunacy to have 120 Minute IPA in anything other that a freshly washed glass, I was quite intrigued and excited to order a glass.

The beer pours a brilliant amber color with pink accents and a bubbly and foamy white head. The aroma, in stark contrast to the 120 Minute IPA on its own, is full if fresh water melon and is similar to that of a Jolly Rancher watermelon candy. There is also some caramel in the aroma, but it is hidden in the background, and surprisingly, the alcohol and bitter pine hops are nowhere to be found. The taste is like none other. Many beers are made with watermelon, but none provide the fresh thirst-quenching capabilities of Dogfish Head 120 Minute through a watermelon. While it taste fresh, it also has watermelon candy-like characteristics and a nice sugar and caramel undertone. Again, the alcohol was non-existent on the palate, and this beer was on the opposite end of bitter that it usually is. All in all, an entirely different beast. The greatest danger would be that there is no alcohol bite to warn of the 18.0% ABV, and I could have drank this beer all night. So the next time you are at the grocery store, grab a four-pack of Dogfish Head 120 Minute IPA. And a watermelon. You will not regret it.

Oskar Blues HGH

My friends and I took a road trip up to Oskar Blues, and I decided to order a glass of Oskar Blues HGH (Home Grown Hope). The beer pours an amber color with a thin bubbly white head. The aroma is malty with hints of lemon, caramel, and tangerine. The taste is bitter and citrusy with tangerine, lemon, and grapefruit. A reside is left behind that is slightly oily and a bit sticky, which was much appreciated from the added hops. The alcohol content is 8.0% ABV. Another hit and great beer from Oskar Blues that really took advantage of hops without being too bitter.

Short's Bourbon Barrel Aged Wizard

I ordered a glass of Short's Bourbon Barrel Aged Wizard at Falling Rock Tap House in Denver during Great American Beer Fest. The beer pours a black color with a thin bubbly tan head. The aroma consists of chocolate, vanilla, and of course, bourbon. The taste is dry and chocolaty, although I was disappointed that I was more of a powder flavor than chocolate nibs. I quickly forgave that shortcoming when the loads of of bourbon and vanilla flavors made their was through. There was a smooth finish with some milk chocolate flavors as well. The alcohol content is 11.0% ABV. I enjoyed the flavors in this beer, event the powdered cocoa flavors, and felt that they were not overpowered by the bourbon either.

Alaskan Perserverance

On tap at Freshcraft during Great American Beer Fest was Alaskan Perseverance, the 25th Anniversary beer, and I did not hesitate to order a glass. The beer pours a black color with a very lofty and foamy tan head. The aroma consisted of smoke, chocolate, toasted malts, vanilla, and oak. The taste is dry and silky smooth because of milk chocolate and the amount of smoke entrapped in this beer. Toasted malts also provide some dryness as well as a hint of caramel. The finish has warming alcohol bite before being smoothed out with some vanilla. The after taste is all about the oak flavor that again is dry. The alcohol content is 9.0% ABV. The Perseverance was a wonderful beer that was very dry and smoky, two things that I definitely enjoy in a beer.