Duclaw Mysterium

While in Baltimore for a concert, my fiancee and I stopped in to the Leinenkugel Beer Garden and I ordered a glass of Duclaw Mysterium. The beer pours a caramel color with almost no head as there are only white specks on top of the liquid. The aroma consists of cinnamon, nutmeg, and caramel. The taste is light but spicy and floral with some cinnamon and nutmeg flavors. There is a dry finish with some caramel, pepper, and Belgian yeast. The alcohol content is 4.8% ABV. I enjoyed this offering from Duclaw, as it was both spiced and refreshing. It definitely kept the tongue guessing on flavors and kept me entertained.

Grandview Brewing-Stouts and Stilettos Breakfast at Tierney's

My buddy Ed brought over a bottle of the Stouts and Stilettos-Grandview Brewing collaboration Breakfast at Tierney’s, Tierney also being a friend of mine. The beer pours a black color with an overly lofty tan and bubbly head that leaps out of the bottle. The aroma is big on cinnamon, chocolate, vanilla, and maple. The taste, like the aroma, is big on the cinnamon with a little chocolate and vanilla. Light maple syrup flavors come out on the finish. The alcohol content is approximately 9.0% ABV. I’d say this beer was way too big on cinnamon and it took over most of the other flavors. If it were to be done again, I would recommend using cinnamon sticks rather than powder and pulling back a little bit on the cinnamon content. Otherwise, it had some great flavors to it.

Liquid Hero Hop Hero #7

My buddy Ed brought over a growler of Liquid Hero Hop Hero #7 Lots-O-Citra. The beer pours an amber color with a thin bubbly white head. The aroma consists of tangerine, grapefruit, passion fruit, orange, and caramel. The taste is dry and bitter with plenty of citrus flavors including grapefruit, tangerine, orange, and passion fruit. A pepper finish rounds out the beer with a lemon accent. The alcohol content is 6.5% ABV. This was a pretty delicious IPA with lots of citrus flavors. I’m a big fan of the citra hop, so this beer was right down my alley.

Brooklyn Bamboozle

My buddy Ben brought over a bottle of Brooklyn Bamboozle to share with me. The beer pours a pale golden color with a lofty and frothy white head the leaves specks of lacing on the glass. The aroma consists of lemon, pepper, grass, and caramel. The taste is light and refreshing with lemon, pepper, and grass. There is a little bit of a cardboard flavor finish to it. The after taste lets some earthy hops linger on the tongue. The alcohol content is 8.67% ABV. This was an alright Belgian Pale Ale with some decent flavors, but the finish was a little less than stellar.

Brewworks Angry Berry

I ordered a glass of Brewworks Angry Berry on a recent visit to the Bethlehem location. The beer pours a dark brown color with a thin filmy white colored head. The aroma consists of blueberry, strawberry, caramel, and malt. The taste is sweet at first with strawberry and blueberry flavors all built upon a solid caramel malt base. There is a light tartness in the finish with a lingering sugar sweetness and a light grassy hop hint. The alcohol content is 6.1% ABV. This was a nice alternative to those beers that do not have any base to them and focus on the fruit, usually leading to a watery taste. There is plenty of fruit flavor in this beer, but it also has a nice background.

Brewworks Cœur Des Ténèbres

I ordered a glass of Brewworks Cœur Des Ténèbres on a recent visit to the Bethlehem location. The beer pours a dark brown color with a thin bubble white colored head. The aroma consists of caramel, raisin, malt, fig, dark fruit, candisugar, and grass. The taste is light and sweet, plenty of caramel and malts coming out on the front end. Raisin, fig, dark fruits, and orange all provide a solid base for the beer, and it finishes with some earthy flavors and grass. The alcohol content is 6.1% ABV. The beer had plenty of flavors and was relatively light and easy drinking without being too heavy. I will say that the beer may have been a little too watery, but not enough to interrupt my enjoyment of it.

Brewworks Black Friday

On a recent visit to the Brewworks in Bethlehem, I ordered a glass of Black Friday, a bourbon barrel aged Scotch Ale. The pours a black color with a thin bubbly tan head. The aroma consists of caramel, toasted malts, bourbon, vanilla, cherry, and grass. The taste is bold and sweet with caramel and toasted malts but very well balanced by the bourbon alcohol bite. Vanilla, oak, and cherry come out on the finish while bubbles tickle the tongue. The alcohol content is 8.4% ABV. I was more than impressed with this beer, and it had a nice sweet start but allowed the bourbon to balance and shine at the same time.

Widmer Rotator Spiced IPA

I ordered a glass of Widmer Rotator Spiced IPA at Al’s Pub in Enola. The beer pours a golden color with a thin bubbly white head. The aroma consists of tea, ginger, cinnamon, lemon, and pepper. The taste is dry and full of tea with a spicy ginger bite. Light lemon and pepper hop bitterness balances out the beer and some cinnamon comes out on the on the finish. The alcohol content is 6.47% ABV. I thought that was a rather good, refreshing, and delicious beer with plenty of flavoring for an IPA.

Hoppin' Frog Hop Heathen

I received a bottle of Hoppin’ Frog Hop Heathen from Cleveland Food and Brews in a beer trade. The beer pours a black color with a thin frothy tan colored head that leaves a little bit of a lacing on the glass. The aroma consists of chocolate, dank, coffee, lemon, caramel, wood, tobacco sweetness, grapefruit, and maple syrup. Honestly, this is one of the best smelling beers I’ve ever had. The taste is smooth at first with some chocolate and caramel but bitters rather quickly with lemon, grapefruit, tangerine, and pepper. A touch of tobacco comes out in the finish with some woody and toasted malt flavors. The alcohol content is 8.8% ABV. I will say that I was more impressed with the aroma than the flavor, but that shouldn’t take anything away from the flavor. I was taken aghast by the aroma and would smell this all day. The taste took me on a rollercoaster ride of flavors and was a really well put together beer.

Sixpoint Spice of Life: Nugget

I ordered a glass of Sixpoint Spice of Life: Nugget while at McGrath’s in Harrisburg, PA. The beer pours a golden color with a frothy white head. The aroma consists of lemon, pine, funk, caramel, and pepper. The taste is light on the tongue with hints of caramel, and lemon. Pepper and pine provide a spicy and dry finish. The alcohol content is 6.5% ABV. This was a rather refreshing beer that has a light body and focuses on the hop content, which I can appreciate. It was more than refreshing for a warm summer evening.