Woodcut No. 6 Oak Aged American Ale

While at the Odell Brewery, I picked up a bottle of Woodcut No. 6 Oak Aged American Ale and brought it back in my luggage. This beer features Mosaic hops which are blowing up right now. The beer pours an amber color with a lofty frothy cream colored head that leaves specks of lacing on the glass. The aroma consists of passion fruit, tangerine, toasted caramel, pineapple, and orange. The taste is bold with strong caramel up front and plenty of passion fruit, tangerine, orange, and pineapple flavors. A light oak dryness with a peppery spice comes in on the finish. The alcohol content is 10.0% ABV. This beer is full of tropical fruit and delivers a wonderful flavor with a light spice and oak accent. It also has an earthy presence to it with some grassy accents.

Trinity Stop Making Sense Imperial Bock

As part of a beer trade with Hoptopia, I received a bottle of Trinity Stop Making Sense Imperial Bock. The beer pours a dark amber color with a frothy beige colored head that leaves a thin lacing on the glass. The aroma consists of caramel, smoked malts, raisin, and toast. The taste is smooth and sweet at first with a creamy mouthfeel. Caramel and toasted malts with a hint of smoke shine next with some raisin, pepper, and grass on the finish. The alcohol content is 10.0% ABV. The beer has a strong sweetness about it but it is delicately balanced with some grassy and peppery hops.

Crooked Stave Wild Wild Brett Persica

As part of the Cellar Reserve Society, I received a bottle of Crooked Stave Wild Wild Brett Persica. The beer pours a golden color with a bubbly white colored head that subsides rather rapidly. The aroma consists of vinegar, peaches, brett funk, hay, barnyard, horse blanket, and grass. The taste is puckers at first with lots of vinegar but a wonderful peach flavor on the front end. The beer then switches to a hay and grassy flavor with an excellent earthiness to it. The alcohol content is 7.5% ABV. As far as sour beers goes, this one was fantastic. The peach flavors pushed a slightly sweet agenda over the aggressive vinegar and brett flavors, making for a carnival ride on the tongue.

Appalachian Brewing Company Grain Series Wheat IPA

(I apologize about the lack of picture, but it was on my previous cell phone and I have since lost it)While at Appalachian Brewing Company for The Clarks concert, I ordered a glass of the Wheat IPA from the Grain Series. The beer pours a golden color with a frothy white colored head. The aroma consists of wheat, lemon, hay, and pepper. The taste is spicy with lemon and pepper on the front end with some hay creating a dry finish. The alcohol content is 7.5% ABV. This beer was rather good and spicy, creating a complex array of flavors that are not typically associated with each other. It was difficult to determine if they really worked together well, but I would drink this beer again.

Selin's Grove Brewing Hop Nouveau

(I apologize about the lack of picture, but it was on my previous cell phone and I have since lost it) Another beer I ordered on a recent visit to Selin’s Grove Brewing Company was the Hop Nouveau. The beer pours an amber color with a thin filmy white colored head. The aroma consists of lemon, tangerine, caramel, and hop oil. The taste is built upon a solid caramel base with lemon, tangerine, a hint of grapefruit, and orange. An oily finish with pepper and spruce really brings the beer full circle. The alcohol content is 5.5% ABV. This was a rather delicious wet hopped pale ale that focused on the hops but had a good backbone as well.

Selin's Grove Brewing Pumpkin Ale

(I apologize about the lack of picture, but it was on my previous cell phone and I have since lost it) I stopped in to Selin’s Grove Brewing company for lunch and to order a glass of the Pumpkin Ale. The beer pours an orange-amber color with a solid frothy white colored head. The aroma consists of pumpkin, cream, nitrogen, and light spices. The taste is creamy with pumpkin, graham cracker, light cinnamon, nutmeg, allspice, and cream. A lightly dry finish rounds out the beer. The alcohol content is 5.6% ABV. At first I wasn’t too impressed with this beer, but it gets better as it warms so wait for that to happen. I’ve heard that this is the “best pumpkin beer” and while I can’t endorse that statement, I thought it was pretty good after it warmed up a bit.

Smuttynose Imperial Stout

(I apologize about the lack of picture, but it was on my previous cell phone and I have since lost it) I ordered a glass of Smuttynose Imperial Stout while out to dinner at Brewhouse Grille in Camp Hill. The beer pours a black color with a frothy tan colored head. The aroma consists of chocolate, caramel, toasted malts, coffee, and vanilla. The taste is smooth with dark chocolate, vanilla, toasted malts, and caramel. The finish has a slight spice with pepper and spruce, and the after taste is reminiscent of toast. The alcohol content is 9.8% ABV. Overall, this was a solid performer in the Imperial Stout category, as the flavors were bold and robust. I would absolutely come back to this one.

Deschutes Inversion IPA

On my way out of Denver in the airport, I ordered a bottle of Deschutes Inversion IPA with my lunch. The beer pours a copper color with a frothy off-white colored head. The aroma consists of lemon, pine, spruce, and caramel. The taste is bitter with lemon, lots of pine, and spruce. Pepper arrives on the finish, and the beer has a solid caramel base that is overshadowed by hops. The alcohol content is 6.8% ABV. Overall, this is a wonderful beer, especially in the style. It had a great fresh flavor and a prominent bitterness with a backbone that stood up to the test.

Fort Collins Brewing Incredible Hop Imperial Black IPA

While at the Fort Collins Brewery, I picked up a bottle of Incredible Hop Imperial Black IPA. The beer pours a black color with a lofty and frothy tan colored head that leaves a thin lacing on the glass as it subsides. The aroma consists of chocolate, toasted malts, cardboard, lemon, pine, and caramel. The taste is full of toasted malts and dark chocolate flavors before it transitions into lemon, pine, spruce, and pepper. The after taste gives hints of coffee and sweet caramel. The alcohol content is 10.0% ABV. This was quite a delicious and well done Imperial Black IPA. There was so much chocolate and toasted malt flavor that was balanced nicely with hop bitterness.

Brasserie BFM-Terrapin Spike & Jerome's

Another beer my buddy Matt brought over to share was the Brasserie BFM-Terrapin Spike & Jerome’s. The beer pours a caramel color with a thin bubbly cream colored head. The aroma consists of vinegar, cherry, caramel, and sugar. The taste is lightly sour with lots of vinegar and a raspberry and cherry tart flavors. There is a sugary pie-like finish. A lingering pepper finish sticks around for a little while with an oaky taste. The alcohol content is 10.0276% ABV. I can’t say I picked up the rum flavor in this beer, but it was a great sour barley wine. It was my first experience with this style, but it was similar to a Flanders Red.