Never enough IPA

I can never get too many good IPAs in my fridge.  Most recently I was pleased to find two thoroughly enjoyable selections.  One hails from Colorado and the other from New York but both brought a great night of flavor to this hophead.
First up is the Great Divide Titan IPA.  This brew has won awards all over the globe and it's not hard to tell why.  It is not shy about what it is.  The hoppy bite is bold and up front with every sip bringing along citrus and pine notes for the ride.  It is a beautifully smooth beer with a lingering bite which is every so enjoyable.  It was great from beginning to end.  My favorite Great Divide brew to date.
Second for tonight is the Southern Tier 2xIPA.  As the name implies, it is indeed an imperial IPA and definitely fit for a ruler.  The bottle speaks of 4 types of hops and 3 kinds of malts used in this beer and oh the things those combinations do.  It is a blissful balance of malt body with bold hop bitter.  Citrus and pine notes are present as well as a delightful zesty zing that dances around on your taste buds.  It was a smooth and lovable beer to be certain.
These two IPAs made for a great night.  Coming soon are a few big players including a high octane selection from Avery.  Stay tuned and until then, cheers!

World of Beer

I recently was lucky enough to have a group of friends accompany me to the new World of Beer in southern Charlotte. It has been open for less then a week and it is fantastic!  They have over 500 types of beer in bottles and if I recall correctly 46 types on tap.  I was in heaven!  The staff was upbeat and friendly and the bar itself was lovely and a really nice place to spend an evening.  They don't serve food there, but the have an agreement with several local food establishments for free delivery which we did and it worked out great.  The worst part of the whole night was trying to pick what I was going to drink!  Most of what I drink is bottled and enjoyed in the comfort of my living room so when I go out I really like to go draft.  The other great thing about drinking at a bar like this is the great selection of local beer that you can't but bottled in the local store.  With that in mind, I had 4 fantastic beers from right here in North Carolina.  Lets get right to them.
I am a huge NoDa Brewing fan from everything I have tried so far and this outing just added to my love of them.  First I tried the NoDaRyeZ'd double rye IPA.  I can honestly say I'd never tried a rye IPA before and I was pleasantly surprised with it bright taste and overall refreshing nature.  It was boldly hoppy with a citrus tang.  I was thrilled I had started with that particular brew as it set the tone for a great night of beer.
I followed that beer up with another outstanding NoDa selection known as Coco Loco.  This porter had a beautiful chocolate malt backbone with striking bitter notes.  Caramel and roast flavors spiral through it with a hint of a coffee note coming through as I drank.  It was a beautiful and robust beer that I would drink over and over.
There are so many other breweries in NC and I really wanted to see what they have to offer so my next beer for the evening was a Foothills Brewing Sexual Chocolate imperial stout.  The body was a rich chocolaty malt base with toffee and coffee flavors.  It had a bright bitter edge to it and was a very well balanced beer.  I greatly enjoyed the layers of flavor it offered.  
And the night ended on a great note with a Lonerider Deadeye Jack porter.  This porter was beautifully smooth and drinkable with a strong malt base laced with sweet deep chocolate notes and roast flavors.  A nice hoppy bitterness rounded out this brew wonderfully and made it a hit with me.
I really didn't have anything bad to say about anything from this evening.  When you have a great bar, great friends, and amazing beers how can you complain?  I even got my World of Beer loyalty card complete with WOB koozie as i plan to find my way back there as often as possible.   I hope this inspires all of you to get out there and try something new and to give local beer a chance! Cheers!

The Great Taste of Great Lakes

In an earlier post I spoke on Great Lakes Brewing and their commitment to sustainable practices, but first and foremost they make great beer.  I have a sentimental attachment to this brewing company as they were one of the first craft breweries I ever experienced and they definitely helped to shape my love of good beer.  For this post I want to talk about two of their wide array of available beers: Burning River and Commodore Perry.  So let's get to it.
First is the Burning River pale ale.  I tend towards dark beers for personal preference, but this pale was memorable and high on the drinkability scale for me.  It is light and crisp with bright citrus notes and a punch of hoppy bitterness that sticks with you.  Beating the heat is easy with a refreshing pale like this.  It gets the Beerzilla seal of approval for tastiness.
Second beer tonight is Commodore Perry IPA.  I do love a good IPA and this lived up to my expectations in every way.  Along with the wonderfully strong hoppy kick, it has a delightful fruity back end.  I enjoyed every drop and I'm ready to get another.
I haven't had anything with the Great Lakes name on it that didn't make me happy.  Now I'm just keeping my eyes open for a couple of their seasonal brews - namely, Lake Erie Monster and Blackout Stout.  Coming soon: Avery, Lagunitas, Shipyard, and another night out on the town!  Until then, Cheers!

Magic Beer

I don't usually buy all beer from one brewery when I go shopping, but this time I did just that.  I picked up the Winterland variety pack from Magic Hat.  I don't normally get out of the store for less then twenty bucks and that usually only nets me a six pack, but I got this box of twelve for less then twenty.  Thumbs up so far.  Their designs are eye catching and memorable and possibly my favorite visual thing from them is the inside of the caps.  Under each bottle cap is a lovely little saying about beer or life in general.  Fun conversation starters.  On to the brews!  Four beers within to try.  Lets get started.

First up is Encore which they call an American Wheat IPA.  It has a bright but not overwhelming bitterness from the start.  A mild fruity flavor and a bit of an earthy grain note comes in as you go.  Overall a tasty brew somewhere between a typical IPA and a wheat beer.

Second is the Ravell, a porter brewed with vanilla.  From the first sip I was a fan of this porter.  It has rich coffee, caramel, and vanilla flavors mixing around over a mild malt base.  It's not a very heavy brew just a bold flavored well balanced porter I look forward to drinking again.

Third is Howl the black lager.  It has a rich malt base with strong dark coffee flavor and traces of vanilla and dark chocolate.  It was moist and refreshing.  As long as you like coffee notes, you should like this beer.

Last in the box is their #9 which they call the Not Quite Pale Ale.  This is the Magic Hat beer you will find most often (at least in stores in my area).  It is a mild flavored brew with a slightly fruity vibe.  It's a totally drinkable beer but in my opinion nothing to run off and demand your friends try.

I have to say the winner from this pack for me was the Ravell.  I just loved the way the flavors were layered.  Magic Hat scores a thumbs up from me.  Since it was a twelve pack I still have some waiting for me tonight. . .although the Ravell may all be gone already. On the affordable side of good beer, Magic Hat is definitely near the top for me.  And gee it's time for a new seasonal variety pack to come out! Cheers!

Mother Earth Brewing

I always love supporting locals breweries, but I love even more finding breweries using sustainable practices.  In the case of Mother Earth Brewing I can satisfy both of those loves.  Ok so they're not in my immediate town, but they aren't far east of where I am in North Carolina in a town called Kinston (which honestly I'd never heard of).  Mother Earth is coming up on their four year anniversary offering can, bottle, and draft offerings.  They have a Tap Room in Kinston (so a road trip may have be be planned) and from the brew finder part of their website I'm only seeing bottled distribution across North Carolina so everyone else has to remember to try them when they come here on vacation.  The website states their mission as "To help you savor the goodness of Mother Earth" and they do indeed do just that. From the solar array on their roof to the "blue jean" insulated refurbished building to the local grown ingredients and even the tap handles made of sustainable bamboo, they give praises to the goodness of the green mother in all they do.  They truly have thought of a huge number of ways to keep their negative impact low and their positive impact high.
 With ten varieties of beer available, some year round and some seasonal, they have something for most palates.  I've only gotten my hands on one so far and that is the Sister of the Moon IPA.  This IPA was rich with earthy malt flavor with a solid dose of hoppy bitterness.  It was a great balancing act indeed.  I found the malt body stronger then a lot of IPAs offer.  It almost come across as an imperial IPA which is always a good thing.  For my first Mother Earth experience I was very pleased with both beer and brewery and I look forward to trying their other options.  As a matter of fact, tonight they have an event here in Charlotte with a vegan restaurant Fern, Flavors From the Garden consisting of a five course meal with a beer pairing for each course.  Should anyone happen to need someone to accompany them to this glorious dinner I am readily available.   It sounds amazing!  Mother Earth, you have made me one happy hippie hophead.  Until next time, cheers!

St. Patty's Day!

No, I do not drink green beer.  As festive as it may be, it is nasty beer (before and after greening) and it is as green coming out as it was going in. . .that's just wrong in my book.  I choose instead to enjoy a nice dark malty beer.  For tonight I have two Heavy Seas beers.  Let's get to it!
First up was a seasonal offering called Black Cannon which is a black IPA.  It is an extension of their IPA Loose Cannon brewed with black malt and may I say that it was quite tasty.  It has lovely strong hoppy bitterness finishing with a dark malty back end.  There were lovely coffee notes and just a touch of sweetness.  It was tasty from beginning to end and overall refreshing and delightful.  My only complaint is that I won't be able to get it all year as they only offer this delicious brew from January to March.  Guess I better grab a few more while I can.
Second offering was a year round offering by the name of Peg Leg.  This imperial stout was super tasty with a strong malt body and bold coffee, chocolate, and caramel notes.  I did find the weight of this brew a bit lighter then many stouts and imperial stouts but with the flavors so bright and well balanced that didn't bother me at all.  As a matter of fact, it struck me as a stout I could drink in the heat of the southern summer when a heavy beer is sometimes more then the weather will allow you to enjoy.
These being my first Heavy Seas beers, I must say they left a wonderful taste in my mouth and I am definitely inspired to try their other offerings.  It looks like the east coast and midwest states are the only ones able to enjoy their offerings at this time, but if you can - you should.
I hope everyone enjoyed a safe and wonderful St. Patrick's Day - Cheers!

Imperial Pleasures

I love an imperial anything but imperial IPAs are definitely tops on my list so without further ado I bring to you two of the best Imperial IPA I have experienced in awhile.

Stone Brewing makes some amazing beer and their Ruination Imperial IPA is no exception.  The bottle claims it is "A liquid poem to the glory of the hop" and it truly is.  It is a glorious blend of bright bitterness and cool citrus tones.  It is refreshing and amazingly balanced and all around super enjoyable.  The bottle has a rather lengthy write up on the beer within but its worth a read.  It says its called Ruination "because of the ruinous effect on your palate" which gave me a giggle.  But I will admit I was loathe to taste another beer after it without a good palate cleansing least it destroy my enjoyment of the other beer with its fabulousness.  I've had a friend refer to Stone Brewing as unrepentant beer snobs and I can see where that might come from as they have a very high opinion on their beer and indeed the art of beer making in general but they make some incredible beer and they deserve to be proud.  As always Stone earns a big thumbs up on their finely crafted beer and I look forward to many more.

The second Imperial IPA of this review is Founders Brewing Double Trouble.  I love the label graphic with the face seen from both directions as well as their reasoning which is that "the hops will get you going and coming".  There was a wonderful bright bitterness with grapefruity notes which gave it a lingering tang.  It was a very fresh and pleasing assault on the taste buds but certainly not for the hop shy.  

I truly enjoyed both of the beers in this post but if you compare them it is a hands down win for Stone's Ruination.  Just a phenomenal and memorable brew that I will certainly be enjoying again and sharing with my friends (if they get to my house before I drink them all).  Uh oh, think it might be time for another beer run. Until then, Cheers!

Out on the Town

So far every beer I have talked about has been in a bottle or can but tonight I change all that.  A coworker and I ventured out to Tacomac (www.tacomac.com) which is a restaurant sporting more flat screen televisions then a Best Buy all set to sports programs and a plethora of beer options.  Just what they offer on tap took up an entire 8 1/2 by 11 page with two columns in get-out-your-reading-glasses print.  They carry even more in bottles but I couldn't resist the call of a good draft.  The waiter was great and offered us samples of almost any draft they have to help us choose. Choices choices oh my.  I ended up trying two amazing beers so of course now I get to share them with you.
I have been wanting for some time now to try a NoDa Brewing Company (www.nodabrewing.com) offering.  The company is around a year old and directly from the city I now reside in. The only way to get their beers is on tap from a local restaurant or at their taproom, which does fill growlers from my understanding.  This was the first time I had made it somewhere I could try one so that was my first choice and it was a fantastic choice.  I got a Midnight Madness black IPA.  It was a gorgeous dark color with caramel colored head that was certainly inviting.  One taste sealed the deal for me with its' rich malt body and lovely strong bitterness.  It was a beautiful harmony of flavors and just a fantastic beer all around.  This beer is just one great reason to SUPPORT YOUR LOCAL BREWERIES!  Now I have to make it to the taproom to try them all. Two giant thumbs up NoDa.
I really fought with myself over my second selection.  I wanted to try another local but the siren song of the nitro won out and I went with a Rogue Shakespeare Nitro (www.rogue.com).  I was thrilled with the deep rich body and thick creamy head.  It had a mild sweetness over a powerful malt core with coffee and caramel flavors throughout.  Definitely a delightful offering from Rogue, but everything I have had from Rogue has been superb so I expected nothing less. 
I could have gone nuts sampling the rest of the ones that looked good but decided to leave something to look forward to.  Overall a great night with amazing beer.  Who wants to come next time?  Cheers!

Walk a Mile in My Clown Shoes

Ok so I've already sung the praises of a couple of Clown Shoes beers, but I just can't get enough.  It doesn't seem to matter what style it is, if it's Clown Shoes, it's phenomenal.  Tonight's beer is no exception.  Vampire Slayer is the name of their 2nd Anniversary Imperial Stout.  They claim it to be brewed with holy water and malt smoked locally with vampire killing stakes.  Whatever they used it is a brilliant beer.  It is rich and malty with coffee and caramel tones.  It has a wonderful fullness in both taste and body.  If you liked Blaecorn Unidragon you will love Vampire Slayer.  Both are amazing and the only notable difference for me was a touch more sweetness to the Vampire Slayer.  I finished this beer and was desperately sad that I had wasted money buying any other beers.  If you haven't tried any of the Clown Shoes brews you simply must. Their website claims their mission to " is to produce beer without pretension while being free and a little crazy".  I'm down with that.  I am a hard core Clown Shoes fan and  I am spreading the love.  Cheers!

Barleywine Adventure

I was feeling adventurous when I made my latest beer run.  In addition to trying some Belgian beers, I picked out a couple barleywine ales to give a shot.  It was a six pack of powerful brew so lets have no more ado.
First was a Brooklyn Brewery Monster Ale.  Opening the bottle you get hit with the strong odor similar to a sherry with a fig edge.  One sip and you get a definite twang of alcohol reminiscent of a plum wine with a malt back to it.  There is quite a fruity sweetness with caramel depths but this beer had so much complexity to it that I found myself discovering subtle changes with every sip.  A memorable brew to be sure and quite an introduction to barleywines for me.
Second was a Harpoon from their Leviathan series.  It couldn't have been much more different from the Brooklyn beer.  It has a bright fruity odor without the alcohol edge which was pleasant.  Sipping it gave you a mild bitterness with a heavier malt base.  It had a earthy fruit vibe along the raisin or plum vibe as well, but the taste came across fuzzy and lacking clarity to me.  They flavors had great potential but I would have loved to see them intensified and sharpened a bit.
I think barleywines, much like Belgian beers, aren't going to make my favorite beers list anytime soon but I really enjoyed trying some out and getting to know what the hype is all about.  Coming soon I will be going back to my true loves - Imperial IPA and Imperial Stout. Until then, cheers!

Bodacious Belgians

So tonight I tried something new for me.  I don't believe I've ever enjoyed a Belgian beer before now and I really can't imagine how I've missed them.  All I know is tonight was all about two strong Belgian dark ales and I am feeling no pain as I write this.
First Belgian I tried was an Adriaen Brouwer Dark Gold Ale. It checks in at a nice 8.5% alcohol but you would never know from the taste.  First thing I noticed was a very pleasing fizziness on the tongue from its nice high carbonation level. It was fairly sweet with a mild hoppy bitterness followed by dark fruity flavors (possibly fig or raisin) and a touch of what came across as clove.  I tried it far colder then a Belgian should really be enjoyed but as it warmed the flavors really popped and a bit of caramel came through.  Overall a lovely beer and a great experence for my first Belgian brew.
Second was a Kasteel Donker.  It is considered a quad and amps up the alcohol content to a hefty 11%.  Unlike my first beer, the alcohol level is incredibly evident in this beer from the odor to the first sip which made me shiver involuntarily.  After getting past what almost seemed like hard liquor more then beer, I started to find some fig or raisin notes and a fruity sweetness as well as a back end tartness.  There was virtually no hoppy bitterness to it which really left me feeling like I wasn't drinking a beer at all.  If I'm looking for a beer this is not what I'm looking for, but you can be assured I would be a cheap date throwing back these.
Tonight has been quite eye opening on the Belgian beer front.  The differences between these beers was astounding.  I can't say I'm a Belgian fan but at least now I can say I know what I'm missing without them.  Cheers!

Choice Choices

I've got a few quick reviews to share with you.  They have nothing to do with each other.  That seems to be my problem.  I like so many different types of beer I wander aimlessly down the rows of beer randomly grabbing beer.  Sometimes I choose by brewery by reputation, sometimes by type of beer, sometimes by the catchy name or striking label, and every once in awhile by the price tag (which can be upwards of ten bucks a bottle for some).  I need direction.  I need you wonderful hopheads out there to give me a few suggestions I may like and/or need to tell the world about.  Leave me comments or you will continue to be subjected to my random beer grabs.  I love to talk beer and am always up for discussion on any subject included in my blog or indeed anything about beer so talk to me people.  Now that I've said that lets talk about a couple beers, shall we?

First up was a major winner.  Dogfish Head 90 minute IPA was a fullbodied brilliantly balanced beer.  Blissfully hoppy, it was rich and backed with great malty power.  It is indeed a glorious representation of an Imperial IPA.  Yes, oh yes, it will find its' way home with me again.

Second beer for this post was Anderson Valley Brewing's Barney Flats oatmeal stout.  It  has won lots of awards in the beer world so I wanted to try it for myself.  I found it rather light with a mild sweetness.  Soft malt and woody flavors came through and it was smooth going down.  I found it less then bold in overall flavor but drinkable. 

My time off is coming up which means a beer run is imminent.  What will be next? Cheers!

Beauty in Beer

Well today was Dr. Seuss's birthday and being a big fan I was thrilled to see this article in the Brookston Beer Bulletin about some awesome Narragansett beer ads he did in the 40s. Super cool find.  Yes, its true that good beer doesn't need clever names or fancy exteriors, but many companies make the outside look as good as the inside tastes.
Flying Dog has a fantastic artist, Ralph Steadman.  His body of work expands far past beer bottles and is a wild exploration of life in all forms.  He truly brings a sense of beauty to their packaging with his beautiful work.
Half Acre Brewing has some bold work on their product as well from Phineas X Jones whose work is striking if slightly macabre and definitely draws the eye.
Clown Shoes Brewing has some simple but striking illustrations on their bottles that have actually come under a bit of fire due to their subject.  Stacey George, the artist, who by the way won awards for her labels, defends her work in the piece I have linked on her name.  Personally, I love her simple striking images.  Lighten up people. It's a beer label.
Can and bottle graphics in general have become highly enjoyable from the cans of 21st Amendment to Ska Brewing's bright graphic cans and wax dipped bottles.  I know when I'm at a loss for what to try in the expansive shelves of bottles at my local store I let my eye scan for a pretty label.  That reminds me. . .I need beer. Cheers!