Magic Hat Heart of Darkness

I stopped into the new Federal Taphouse in Harrisburg, and I ordered a glass of Magic Hat Heart of Darkness. The beer pours a black color with a bubbly tan colored head. The aroma consists of chocolate, toasted malts, and coffee. The taste is smoky on the front end with toasted malts, lots of dark chocolate flavor, oatmeal, milk, and caramel. A dry finish takes over and leaves behind some maltiness. The alcohol content is 5.7% AB V. I was pleasantly surprised at this offering from Magic Hat as it was a solid beer. I haven’t been sold on their beers as of late, but I would come back to this offering again.

Brasserie Dubuisson Frères sprl Scaldis Blonde Ale Triple

As part of the Michael Jackson Rare Beer of the Month Club, I received a bottle of Brasserie Dubuisson Frères sprl Scaldis Blonde Ale Triple. The beer pours a golden colored with an extremely lofty and frothy white colored head that leaves some specs of lacing on the glass. The aroma consists of banana, hay, grass, Belgian yeast, Belgian spice, and lemon. The taste is light and bready with a large banana and lemon profile. The mouth feel is light and carbonated with some hay and pepper on the finish, yielding a nice earthiness. The alcohol content is 10.5% ABV. This was a nice, light-bodied triple that was also quite refreshing.

Shmaltz He'brew Jewbelation Sweet 16 Anniversary Ale

My buddy Ed opened a bottle of Shmaltz He’brew Jewbelation Sweet 16 Anniversary Ale when we went to his place for the Eclipse tasting. The beer pours a black color with a frothy tan colored head. The aroma consists of raisin, chocolate, malts, caramel, fig, and vanilla. The taste is strong and full of chocolate and caramel malts on the front end. Some fig and raisin filter to the surface before the alcohol kicks the hell out of the tongue. It brings along with it some peppery spice. The alcohol content is 16% ABV, matching the year of its celebration. This falls in line with all of the other anniversary beers that Shmaltz makes, and I absolutely loved it. The 16% will start to kick your ass, but it’s quite enjoyable.

FiftyFifty Brewing Eclipse 2012

As was done last year, a group of friends and I went in on some FiftyFifty Brewing Eclipse barrel aged beers. This year, we tried the following:

Blue (Old Fitzgerald) - This version had light bourbon aroma fronted by a lot of chocolate. The taste was smooth and dry with a good bourbon flavor that actually thins out the thickness of the stout in the mouth.

Green (Rittenhouse Rye) - Just like in 2011, the Rye had a strong bourbon aroma with accents of rye, pepper, and oak. The taste was bold with the bourbon and very forward, bringing out the spicy rye flavor. Surprisingly, it has a smooth but dry finish.

Beige (Bernheim Wheat) - The aroma had a faint alcohol smell and was mostly dominated by chocolate. The Wheat also provided very faint accents to the taste from the aging. It was a little dry on the finish and almost sweet cherry and and vanilla accents. This beer mostly accented the honey, making it the sweetest of the bunch.

Black (Evan Williams) - The aroma had sweet and smooth bourbon accents, cherry, and vanilla. The taste brought out cherry, vanilla, chocolate, and toasted malts. A lightly dry finish with some alcohol burn arrived, but it was not overpowering and very complimentary.

Purple (Elijah Craig 12-yr) - There was a sweet cherry and vanilla bourbon aroma with a nice background of chocolate. The taste was smooth and sweet with bourbon and vanilla. Hints of cherry arrive with a lightly dry finish before caramel and honey surfaces.

Metallic Gold (Mellow Corn) - This one absolutely smelled like whiskey with some chocolate and alcohol burn. The taste was surprisingly smooth before a very dry alcohol burn that lingers for a good while. This one also brought out lots of honey and was sweet on the tongue.

I’d say it was a tie for Evan Williams and Rittenhouse Rye for me this year based on the ones that I tried in this sample. I know last year my favorite was the Elijah Craig 18-year, so it would have been interesting to see how it stood up against these two. While the Mellow Corn and the Bernheim Wheat version were sweeter and not as intense, there were no bad versions like the Red Roses from 2011.

Tired Hands-Pizza Boy Brewing California Uber Helles

I ordered a glass of the Tired Hands-Pizza Boy Brewing collaboration California Uber Helles. The beer pours a golden color with a frothy white color head. The aroma consists of grapefruit, tangerine, orange, lemon, and pepper. The taste is light and hoppy with grapefruit, orange, and lemon citrus flavors on the front end. It has a peppery and spicy finish that tickles the back of the tongue and light caramel roundness. The alcohol content is 5.3% ABV. This was a clean drinking beer with nice citrus and spiced notes to it. I have since ordered this beer several more times, as I cannot get enough of it.

Pizza Boy Brewing Apple Brandy Barrel Aged Solid Gold Bock

On a recent visit to Al’s of Hampden, I ordered a glass of Pizza Boy Brewing Apple Brandy Barrel Aged Solid Gold Bock. The beer pours an amber color with a thin bubbly white colored head. The aroma consists of sweet apples, caramel, a hint of oak with a dash of of cinnamon, and very reminiscent of apple pie. The taste is powerful with apple flavor right of front and a sharp brandy alcohol bite. Caramel smooths things over before a slightly tart finish. The alcohol content is 5.3% ABV. This barrel-aged beer provided a wonderful blend that is pie-like with a lightly sour aspect to it as well. I highly recommend trying this one if you get the chance.

Stone Vertical Epic 12.12.12

I stopped in at Al’s of Hampden to pick up a bottle of Stone Vertical Epic 12.12.12, the final beer in the series. The beer pours a dark brown color with a lofty and frothy tan colored head that leaves specks of lacing behind on the glass. The aroma consists of candisugar, tobacco, chocolate, raisin, fig, cinnamon, allspice, orange, and nutmeg. The taste is rich and fruity with raisin, dates, fig, orange, and rose all up front. The base of the beer is built with chocolate and tobacco flavors, and the finish has a dry and spicy hop flavor to it that brings along some lemon zest and pine. The alcohol content is 9.0% ABV. I really enjoyed this blend of spices and dark fruits, as it was like no other beer I have tried before. It was hoppy yet full of tobacco and chocolate, keeping me on the edge of my seat throughout the ride.

Troegs Scratch 85- Cocoa Porter

Another beer I tried at the Troegs tasting room was Scratch 85- Cocoa Porter. The beer pours a black color with a bubbly tan colored head. The aroma consists of dark chocolate, toasted malts, and coffee. It’s pretty simple on the nose, but quite enticing. The taste is dark and rich with lots of chocolate and cocoa on the front end. It has a good toasted malt base and a very dry and powdery finish. The alcohol content is 7.0% ABV. This was a wonderful cocoa based beer and was much better than the Scratch 54 attempt. It’s still powdery and dry, but is enjoyable and robust.

Troegs Scratch 84- Belgian Pale Ale

I went to the Troegs tasting room to try Scratch 84- Belgian Pale Ale. The beer pours a dark amber color with a thin bubbly white colored head. The aroma consists of Belgian yeast and spices and plenty of grass. The taste is dry and spicy again with Belgian yeast on the front end. Some grass and an earthiness arrive as well, carried by orange and lemon citrus flavors.. The alcohol content is 6.7% ABV. I’d say this was a very nice Belgian Pale Ale that had some citrus characteristics to it and was very easy to drink.

Boxcar Mango Ginger IPA

While at Duke’s Riverside Bar and Grill I ordered a glass of Boxcar Mango Ginger IPA. The beer pours a golden color with a frothy white colored head. The aroma consists of mango, caramel, ginger, and pepper. The taste is spicy with ginger, a light mango sweetness, and plenty of a caramel background. Pepper and grass spice up the finish. The alcohol content is 7.0% ABV. This was a simple beer with great entry level IPA taste. It definitely erred on the fruity side rather than the bitter side, but the ginger flavor helped appease my tongue a little bit.

Pizza Boy Brewing Orangatang

Another beer I ordered at Al’s of Hampden right after he tapped Pappy was Pizza Boy Brewing Orangatang. The beer pours a golden-amber color with a bubbly white colored head. The aroma consists of orange, vinegar, barnyard funk, grass, and horse blanket. The taste is dry and grassy on the front end with a slight orange sweetness before funk settles in and it is potent leaving behind a horse blanket flavor to linger for quite some time. The alcohol content is 5.2% ABV. I’ll be honest in saying I expected this beer to be more sour than funky, but it was quite delicious. I’d mostly compare it to an orange saison rather than a sour beer.

Pizza Boy Brewing Pappy

I went to Al’s of Hampden when he tapped his own Pizza Boy Brewing Pappy, a Pappy Van Winkle aged imperial stout. The beer pours a black color with a thin filmy tan colored head. The aroma consists of strong bourbon, oak, chocolate, vanilla, and cherry. The taste is very bold and strong with bourbon on the front end that attacks the tongue. The flavor profile is laced with alcohol and gives off oak hints built upon a dark chocolate background. Caramel, coffee, vanilla, and cherry also make some intermediate appearances. The alcohol content is 10.5% ABV. If you love bourbon barrel aged beers, this one is for you. While the bourbon doesn’t overpower the hefty stout, it certainly makes its presence known and yield cherry and vanilla accents into the beer.

Elk Creek Happy Dog ESB

While in state college for a meeting, my boss and I went out to lunch at Kelly's Steak and Seafood Restaurant and I ordered a glass of Elk Creek Happy Dog ESB. The beer pours a brown color with a bubbly off-white colored head. The aroma consists of caramel, fresh hops, grass, and mildew. The taste is smooth and creamy with a large caramel profile. There is a lightly bitter hop finish with grassy accents. The alcohol content is not available online, but I would estimate it to be about 5.0% ABV. This was a tasty overall ESB with the perfect amount of spiciness to balance the sweet caramel base.

Brasserie Dupont Moinette Brune

Another beer I ordered while at Cafe Bruges for my birthday was Brasserie Dupont Moinette Brune. The beer pours an amber color with a bubbly cream colored head. The aroma consists of fig, caramel, cherry, grass, and spices. The taste had a solid caramel and yeast background with a light cherry accent. A spice arrives with a yeasty accompaniment. The alcohol content is 8.5% ABV. This was a rather tasty beer that was extremely bubbly on the tongue. I liked the entire flavor profile, especially the cherry accents.

Brasserie Dupont Saison Dupont

While at Cafe Bruges in Carlisle for my birthday, I finally ordered a bottle of Brasserie Dupont Saison Dupont. I can’t believe it took me so long to finally try it, but it was one of those beers that I always see and never order. The beer pours a golden color with quickly rising bubbles and a frothy white colored head. The aroma is spicy and fruity with lemon, grass, and yeast. The taste is spicy just like the aroma with great citrus accents. Orange and lemon pop out before a grassy finish that dries the mouth with an earthiness about it. The alcohol content is 6.5% ABV. This was a phenomenal saison and I will make sure never to pass this beer up again. It was so clean and fresh with great citrus flavors and a nice spiciness.