Brouwerij Van Viven Smoked Porter

In my May shipment from the Michael Jackson Rare Beer of the Month club, I received a bottle of Brouwerij Van Viven Smoked Porter. The beer pours a dark brown color with a frothy tan head that leaves a thin lacing on the glass. The aroma is filled with smoke and also smells of wood, bbq, meat, chocolate, toasted malts, and caramel. The taste is dry and smoky with a dark Belgian chocolate base that makes the beer dry. A light caramel sweetness arrives before toasted malts, wood, and pepper spice up the finish. The alcohol content is 7.0% ABV. There was a wonderful smoke content in this beer, making it an overly delicious beer. I wouldn’t say it was my favorite smoked beer that I have had, but it was pretty darn close.

Troegs Scratch 65- Kolsch

I went to the Troegs Tasting Room to get my hands on a glass of Scratch 65- Kolsch. As the kolsch is one of my favorite styles of beer, I was more than excited to try this. The beer pours a golden color with a frothy white head that leaves a thin lacing on the glass. The aroma consists of lemon, grass, earth, and a hint of toffee. The taste is clean and fresh, which is the most important part of the experience for me. Lots of grassy and peppery hops make their way to the tongue with a hint of toffee in the background and a light lemony finish. The alcohol content is 4.8% ABV. This was a wonderful kolsch and I am extra particular of this style. I would put it near the top of my lists of the style that I have tried, and I would hope that Troegs brings this beer back again.

Ithaca Excelsior! LeBleu

I picked up a bottle of Ithaca Excelsior! LeBleu from the brewery on its release day. The beer pours a pinkish-amber color with a fizzy and bubble white head that dissipates rather rapidly. The aroma consists of blueberry, vinegar, sugar, yeast, and crust. The taste is light and tart and plenty refreshing. Blueberries provide a base for the beer before vinegar finishes out the flavor. There are hints of pie crust and sugar mixed in as well and a hint of yeast left behind on the tongue. The alcohol content is 5.4% ABV. LeBleu is a wonderful sour beer with plenty of fruity notes on top of vinegar tartness. I am more than excited to see how this beer ages as well, but it has a great start.

Lincoln Abbey Kiwit Man

My fourth homebrew was Kiwit Man, a kiwi wit aged with mangoes.The beer pours a golden-orange color with a frothy white colored head that leaves a faint lacing on the glass. The aroma consists of sweet and sticky mango, kiwi, grapefruit, tangerine, wheat, lemon, and orange. The taste is light and dry with a strong fruity presence. Mango is pretty intense on the tongue with tangerine, orange, and lemon providing citrusy accents. A hint of kiwi lingers in the background before a spiciness surfaces with pepper and spruce. On the tongue, Belgian yeast and wheat is left behind. The alcohol content is 6.1% ABV. I was pleasantly surprised with how this beer came out, and I think the addition of the chinook hops really helped balance the mango sweetness. It was very refreshing and hit other wonderful citrus notes, finishing with a light wit flavor.

Mountain State Brewing Almost Heaven Amber Ale

The final beer I tried at the Mountain State Brewing in Deep Creek Lake, MD was the Almost Heaven Amber Ale. The beer pours an amber color with a foamy white head. The aroma consists of caramel and grass but is very faint. The taste is smooth and creamy with lots of caramel. Light grassy hops with a pepper spice balance the malt profile of the beer and make it easily drinkable. The alcohol content is 5.2% ABV. For an amber ale, this was decent and easy drinking, but not too intense or exceptional.

Mountain State Brewing Cold Trail Ale

Another beer I tried while at Mountain State Brewing in Deep Creek Lake, MD was the Cold Trail Ale, an American Blonde Ale. The beer pours a golden color with thin bubbly white head. The aroma consists of wheat, oat, lemon, and orange. The taste is smooth and sweet with orange and lemon on the front end and hints of wheat and oats. The only dryness and balancing characteristics comes from the grassy hops on the finish. The alcohol content is 5.5% ABV. I wouldn’t put this beer as memorable, but it was a refreshing and citrusy beer that was very easy to drink.

Mountain State Miner's Daughter Oatmeal Stout

I ordered a glass of Mountain State Brewing Miner’s Daughter Oatmeal Stout while at the brewpub in Deep Creek Lake, MD. The beer pours a dark brown color with a thin bubbly tan head. The aroma consists of toasted malts and caramel, but isn’t very strong or complex. While the aroma lacks, the taste makes up for it. The taste is sweet at first with oatmeal and chocolate before transitioning into toasted malts. A milky finish accompanies the beer as well. The alcohol content is 5.2% ABV. This was a decent stout that was best on the finish, as the milk mixed very well with the toasted malt flavors.

Mountain State Brewing Seneca India Pale Ale

While on a trip with some friends to Deep Creek Lake in Maryland, I went to dinner at Mountain State Brewing. The first beer I ordered was the Seneca India Pale Ale. The beer pours an orange-amber color with a bubbly white colored head. The aroma consists of pine, lemon, a hint of orange, caramel, and pepper. The taste starts with a light caramel base with a bitter lemon and pine finish and pepper accents. The alcohol content is 5.4% ABV. The body on this beer is a little light, but does have some decent flavor. I wouldn’t rank it among the best IPAs out there, but it was the best offering that the brewery had.

Three Floyds Behemoth Blonde Barleywine

Another beer I tried recently was Three Floyds Behemoth Blonde Barleywine. The beer pours a copper color with a frothy beige head. The aroma starts with caramel, but lemon and pine are prevalent on the nose. the taste is bitter up front with pine and lemon before the caramel backbone shines through and balances the flavor profile nicely. The alcohol content is 10.5% ABV. I was quite impressed as to how sweet this beer was, but the sweetness never took over as bitter citrus and pine hops took over the tongue and balanced the beer very well.

Three Floyds Dreadnaught

I ordered a glass of Three Floyds Dreadnaught on draft on a recent trip. The beer pours a golden color with a frothy white head. The aroma consists of grapefruit, tangerine, hop oils, resin, and orange. The taste is bitter and dry with a large citrus profile comprised of orange, tangerine, and plenty of grapefruit. There is an oily and resiny finish that lingers for a while. The alcohol content is 9.5% ABV. This is an excellent Imperial IPA that has all the right citrus flavors and hop oils. I’ve had this beer in a bottle before, but having it fresh on draft was unbeatable. It really lingered for a while with the oils, and it was an excellent example of a bitter hop bomb.

Schlafly American IPA

I picked up a six pack of Schlafly American IPA from McHenry Beverage in Deep Creek, MD. The beer pours a golden color with an extremely lofty and frothy white head. The aroma consists of lemon, pine, dank, cheese, grapefruit, tangerine, and caramel. The taste is dry and bitter with a strong lemon presence. There is a bit of a funkiness to it with some stinky cheese and  it finishes with tangerine and grapefruit. A hint of pine and plenty of pepper linger behind on the tongue. The alcohol content is 7.2% ABV. This was a solid IPA with plenty of citrus flavors, spicy notes, and a great funkiness to it.

Brewworks Elongator

Another beer I ordered on a recent visit the the Brewworks in Allentown was the Elongator, a doppelbock. The beer pours a copper color with a thin and filmy beige colored head. The aroma consists of caramel, bread, and toffee. The taste is smooth and sweet with a large caramel and toffee presence on the front end, and a toasted bread finish. A hint of grassy hops with pepper does show up on the finish, and an earthy after taste lingers. The alcohol content is 7.2% ABV. I thought this was a decent doppelbock, but it wasn’t too adventurous either. I’d definitely order another glass as I love the style, and I think it’s one of Brewworks better beers.

Brewworks Always Sunny Pale Ale

I stopped in to Allentown Brewworks for lunch while in Allentown and I ordered a glass of Always Sunny Pale Ale. The beer pours a golden color with a frothy white colored head. The aroma consists of grapefruit, pine, tangerine, and caramel. The taste is dry and bitter with grapefruit and tangerine on the front end. Some pepper and pine come out on the tongue with a caramel finish. The alcohol content is 5.2% ABV. This was a pretty balanced beer with a dry and fruity presence. It may err a little on the watery side, but was quite refreshing.

Samuel Adams Norse Legend

Another beer I ordered on a recent visit to Al’s of Hampden was the Samuel Adams Norse Legend, a Sahtea. The beer pours a dark amber color with a thin filmy beige colored head. The aroma consists of tea, caramel, and grass. The taste is sweet and spicy with lots of tea flavors. Rosemary, thyme, caramel, grass, and pepper all come out on the tongue, and result is a dry finish. The alcohol content is 7.0% ABV. I wouldn’t say that this beer was better than the Dogfish Head Sah’tea, and I also wouldn’t want more than one in a sitting, but it did have some good tea flavors for those that like this style of beer. It was also very floral, which helped balance the beer.