Sly Fox Route 113 India Pale Ale

I picked up a bottle of Sly Fox Route 113 India Pale Ale when I was last in New Jersey. The beer pours a brilliant amber color with a lofty and foamy white head. The aroma consists of caramel and toffee with a light hop hint. The taste is sweet and malty with a bit of caramel and toffee. The hops hit on the back of the tongue on the finish and a slight sourness to it. There is a faint lemon and grapefruit citrus, but not as prevalent as in some IPAs. Due to the hops, it has a slight dryness to it. The alcohol content is 7.0% ABV. While not as overly hoppy and and citrusy as a lot of IPA, Sly Fox's Route 113 IPA is was quite delicious and very well done. I highly recommend this beer, especially to a new enthusiast who may not like a ton of hops.

Moosehead Lager

Another beer in my mixed case was Moosehead Lager. I was also inspired to drink this beer from the overwhelming product placement in “Book of Shadows: The Blair Witch 2.” (Seriously, having a few beers with friends and watching Syfy on a Saturday night can be fun because those movies are terrible). The beer pours a pale straw yellow color with a bubbly white head. The aroma is sour malts and a light skunkiness, most likely due to the green bottle that the beer comes in. The taste is light and malty and has somewhat of a bread aftertaste. There are some crisp sour hops that have a slight sourness to them. The alcohol content is 5.0% ABV. I thought that the Moosehead Lager was surprisingly tasty and I actually enjoyed this beer.

Murphy's Red Ale

Yet another beer in the mixed case that I got was Murphy's Red Ale (Yes, they make more than the Stout). The beer pours a golden color with a lofty foamy white head. The aroma consists of sour hops and sweet malts. The taste is malty and sweet and heavy on the biscuit flavors. It also has a sour hop bite and finishes a little dry with hops. The is no alcohol content posted, but I would guess around 5.0% ABV. I thought this was a rather pedestrian beer, but it was not terrible.

Strangford Lough Legbiter Ale

Another beer in the mixed case that I got was Strangford Lough Legbiter Ale. The beer pours a dark amber color with a frothy white head. The aroma is faint but malty and sweet. The taste is malty with toffee with a light hop sourness. The alcohol content is 4.8% ABV. I though that this was not a bad beer and would be great for warm temperatures with a crisp breeze, but it wasn't not overly impressive.

Strangford Lough St. Patrick's Best Ale

Part of the mixed case that I got was Strangford Lough St. Patrick's Best Ale. The beer pours an amber color that appears very carbonated with a lofty foamy beige head. The aroma is very malty with light fresh hops. The taste is malty and sweet with light caramel undertone. The hops are slightly sour on the back of the mouth. The alcohol content is 4.2% ABV. This was a decent beer and was somewhat reminiscent of an oktoberfest in flavor and experience.

Murphy's Stout

Another beer I acquired in my mixed cased was Murphy's Stout. The beer pours a black color with a creamy tan head about a finger-width high. The aroma is filled with coffee and cream. The taste is smooth and mostly tastes of coffee with a bit of cream accent. There is a good chocolate undertone. The alcohol content is 4.0% ABV. This was a decent stout with good chocolate and coffee flavors that put a great emphasis on the creaminess of the beer as well.

Blue Moon Rising Moon

I participated in a mixed case trade, in which I get two of twelve different types of beers. The first beer I tried out of the case was Blue Moon Rising Moon. The beer pours a light golden color with a lofty foamy head and lots of carbonation bubbles. The aroma consists of wheat with light hints of lime. The taste is mostly wheat an d is very doughy and lots of biscuit flavors. There is somewhat of a dry finish that has a light fresh lime accent. The alcohol content is 5.6% ABV. I wasn't thoroughly impressed with the beer, and it was not very complex and I'd say the finish wasn't completely satisfying. I'd drink it again on a warm day if it was given to me, but I wouldn't go out and buy it again.

Stone Sublimely Self-Righteous Ale

McGrath's in Harrisburg tapped a keg of Stone Sublimely Self-Righteous Ale and I quickly ordered a glass, as my love for Stone Brewing Company has grown exponentially this year. The beer pours a dark brown color with a foamy tan head. The aroma consists of toasted malts, chocolate, and a good amount of citrus hops. The taste is toasted malts with grapefruit finish. There is also a healthy dose of chocolate and coffee, but the bitterness is eliminated by the citrus hops. The alcohol content is 8.7% ABV. The beer was surprisingly hoppy, but overall very delicious. The hops in the beer were excellent, and the chocolate and grapefruit really played nicely together.

Troegs Scratch 29- Belgian Style India Pale Ale

I rushed to the Troegs brewery to pick up a case of Scratch 29 Belgian Style India Pale Ale. The beer pours a golden color with a lofty foamy and bubbly white head. The aroma is filled with banana and pepper with a light hint of citrus. The taste is filled with banana and pepper, with a nice meringue finish. The hops are a perfect accent to this beer and there are lingerings of oak flavors. The alcohol content is 7.7% ABV. As much as Troegs tried to shy away from this being a "Belgian" beer, I think that they nailed the style perfectly. The banana and pepper flavors hit perfect notes as the hops rounded out the flavors. Also worth noting is that this is Troegs' first bottle conditioned beer, so I expect to see more of those in the future.

Ballast Point Big Eye IPA

McGrath's in Harrisburg recently tapped a keg of Ballast Point Big Eye IPA, so I decided to order a glass. The beer pours an amber color with a lofty foamy white head. The aroma contains floral smells and pine. The taste is lemon and orange citrus with a pepper hop finish. There is also a hint of tangerine in there. The beer is really clean and fresh and also has a light caramel undertone. The alcohol content is 7.0% ABV. I thought that this was an excellent IPA without anything being overdone. The hops weren't overpowering, but were also plentiful.

Stoudt's Karnival Kolsch

I picked up a case of Stoudt's Karnival Kolsch for poker night at my house, knowing I needed to have a lighter beer for my coworkers to enjoy. The beer pours a straw color with a bubbly white head. The aroma is sweet and malty with light hops in the background. The taste is sweet and malty with a bit of grapefruit in there. The beer has a lightly dry hop finish. The alcohol content is 4.8% ABV. I though that Stout's has provided an excellent example of a Kolsch, and I highly recommend this beer for the summer. Everyone at poker seemed to enjoy it as well, so it would be a great beer to serve those that do not typically indulge in craft beer.

RJ Rockers First Snow Ale

When I was in South Carolina, I picked up a bottle of RJ Rockers First Snow Ale. I decided to open it on one of the cooler evenings of spring and I could use a little bit of warming up. The beer pours a surprisingly pale yellow color with a bubbly white head. The aroma has a lot of nutmeg and cinnamon. The taste is smooth and sweet with honey and malts at first and finishes with a nutmeg flavor and a cinnamon dryness. The alcohol content is 6.0% ABV. All in all, it was a decent beer with good spices and a nice sweetness of honey. I wasn't expecting a winter beer to be so light colored, but you shouldn't judge a beer by its color.

Allagash Tripel Ale Reserve

Another beer that I was given for providing IT assistance to my friend's parent was the Allagash Tripel Ale Reserve. I have previously had the Tripel, but not the Tripel Reserve. The beer pours a pale yellow color with a lofty foamy white head. The aroma is filled with banana and pepper. The taste follows the aroma and is full of banana and pepper with a nice alcohol bite on the back of the mouth. The alcohol content is 9.0% ABV. I thought that the Tripel Reserve was delicious and refreshing, and was also a little dry due to the spice.

Rogue Somer Orange Honey Ale

I was given a bottle of Rogue Somer Orange Honey Ale for the IT assistance that I provided to my friend's parents. The beer pours a pale yellow color with a bubbly white head. The aroma is full of wheat and light orange citrus. The beer is very light bodied and tastes sweet with honey at first and a light coriander spice. There is a good amount of wheat flavor and the beer finishes with an orange citrus taste. There is a light hint of honey on the back of the tongue. The alcohol content is 5.2% ABV. I thought the beer was heavily carbonated, and maybe a bit too much, but it was a light and refreshing beverage.

Stone Double Bastard

I was given a bottle of Stone Double Bastard for providing some IT support to the parents of a friend (I should work for beer more often). This was the 2009 release. The beer pours a cloudy brown color with a frothy tan head. The aroma has caramel and toffee with light fresh hops. The taste is full of caramel and toffee and has plenty of sweetness. The Double Bastard has a a dry, lightly hoppy finish and a bit of a pepper bite on the back corners of the mouth. The hops are very complimentary and balancing rather than in you face. The alcohol content is 10.5% ABV. I thought that this was a very delicious brew and I would like to get a few more bottles of the Double Bastard.