Wolaver's Oatmeal Stout

I picked up a bottle of Wolaver’s Oatmeal Stout. The beer pours a black color with a frothy beige colored head that leaves some film on the glass. The aroma consists of chocolate, milk, oatmeal, toasted malts, and caramel. The taste is biting with bitter dark chocolate and toasted malts. There is a sweet hint of milk and caramel, but oatmeal really dries out the finish. The alcohol content is 5.9% ABV. This Oatmeal Stout had a nice, rich chocolate flavor with an excellent toasted malt balance.

MateVeza Brewing Morpho Herbal Ale

My fiancee picked out a bottle of MateVeza Brewing Morpho Herbal Ale due to it being organic while we were in Denver, and I was excited to try it. The beer pours a very red-tinted amber color with a frothy white head that makes a lot of noise as it sizzles away. The aroma consists of flowers, hibiscus, rose petal, thyme, and lemon. The taste is dry and very floral with plenty of hibiscus coming up in the front end before a light finish brings out some lemon. The alcohol content is 6.0% ABV. If you are looking for a floral beer, this is the one for you. It is very hibiscus forward with a nice lemon accent.

Wolaver's Pumpkin Ale

I grabbed a six-pack of Wolaver’s Pumpkin Ale from Al’s of Hampden for my fiancee. The beer pours an orange-tinted amber color with a frothy off-white colored head that leaves some lacing on the glass. The aroma consists of fresh pumpkin, nutmeg, cinnamon, allspice, and caramel. The taste is smooth and light on the tongue with a solid pumpkin base, cinnamon, nutmeg, allspice, vanilla, and caramel. The alcohol content is not available online, but I would estimate it to be about 6.0% ABV. I thought all of the flavors in this beer were nicely balanced and it wasn’t too spicy or dry.

Peak Organic Hop Noir

While at Giant Eagle in Pittsburgh, I picked up a bottle of Peak Organic Hop Noir. The beer pours a black color with a frothy tan colored head that barely leaves any lacing on the glass. The aroma consists of dark bitter chocolate, pine, spruce, caramel, and lemon. The taste is very bitter with plenty of pine hops, lemon, and spruce. The finish brings out some roasted malts and bits of chocolate. The alcohol content is 8.2% ABV. I would say this is one of the more bitter Black IPAs that I have had, sand the Stone 15th, and it is focused on the hops and not so much the chocolate malts. I enjoyed it though, and would recommend you try it.

Deschutes Green Lakes Organic Ale

On my first day arriving in Denver for Great American Beer Fest, my fiancee and I took a trip in to Boulder to have lunch at a vegetarian restaurant called Leaf. The also specialize in organic beers, so I ordered a Deschutes Green Lakes Organic Ale. The beer beer pours a red-amber color with a thin but frothy off-white colored head. The aroma consists of caramel malts, pine, and lemon. The taste is fresh and bitter with a hop foreword profile. Plenty of pepper and pine shine through with some lemon accents. The beer finishes with a caramel smoothness. The alcohol content is 5.2% ABV. The Green Lakes Organic Ale was a wonderful and very fresh tasting beer with great bitterness. It should be noted that as far as hop content, this is a hot one.

Fish Tale Organic India Pale Ale

I noticed that McGrath’s had Fish Tale Organic India Pale Ale in the cooler, so I ordered a bottle. The beer pours an orange-amber color with a frothy off-white head. The aroma consists of grapefruit, tangerine, pine, and caramel; all-in-all it is a very fresh smelling aroma. The taste is smooth at first with caramel before tangerine and grapefruit bitterness kicks in. The after taste brings out the pine and spruce hops. The alcohol content is 6.5% ABV. This IPA was very bitter and hoppy, but excellent and quite enjoyable. It didn’t leave a hop film behind in the mouth, but definitely left behind plenty of bitterness.

Peak Organic Winter Session Ale

My girlfriend ordered a glass of Peak Organic Winter Session Ale from Max's Taphouse in Baltimore and allowed me to try the beer. She is a big fan of organic foods and was really excited about the prospect of an organic beer. The beer pours a copper color with a thin filmy white head. The aroma consists of caramel with peaches. The taste is really focused on peaches that are almost cobbler-like with some accents of caramel and a good malt flavor. The alcohol content is 5% ABV. I was somewhat surprised at the peach flavor in this beer, especially a sweet peach cobbler flavor, but it was quite enjoyable. However, I almost find the beer to be an oxymoron, as winter beers are typically higher alcohol content and not sessionable.