An American IPA from another great brewer out of Northern California. This particular IPA is made with 18% rye.
I haven’t really gotten into Bear Republic for some reason. To tell the truth, I think it has to do with the fact that I don’t like the look of their bottles. How incredibly stupid is that?? Anyways, I have overcome my terrible consumer instincts and had their Racer 5 IPA recently which I thought was superb. Now onto another.
After much waiting and anticipation, I finally got a taste of the dark dark sweetness! This is the beer that people wait around for hours once a year for. Got it in a trade for some Cuvee de Tomme.
Wax top pops off with no noticeable carbonation… did I get a bad bottle?
Smells of coffee and sweet alcohol right off the bottle cap, very promising!
Filed under: Uncategorized
Wow, its been a while since my last post. Studying for the CFA has taken me away from this blog for a while, but not away from good beer!
During my studying hiatus, I managed to sample a good number of good brews, too many to count really. Lots of good beers left to go over the rest of the summer so stay tuned!
For some reason I have been on a big IPA spree, including new to me beers from Alesmith and Bear Republic. Something about summer that makes a big crisp hop bomb so appealing. Maybe its the heat. I also got my hands on some more Stone 11th which is one of my favorite beers of all.
Still looking forward to drinking some Dark Lord, and the Westy 8 and 12 in the next couple months!
Filed under: Beer Review
Time for a marathon of quick reviews in no particular order…
Rogue/Santa’s Private Reserve Ale
Spicy and hoppy. I love winter beers and this is an excellent example. A bit more body would have taken this to the next level. Good complexity and drinkability. B
Avery/Samael’s Ale
Oak aged beast packs 15% abv. Tastes thick and syrupy like a barleywine reduction. Reminds me of the J.W. Lees. Sweet, caramel, fruit in the front, big oak finish and a bourbony alcohol burn to finish it off. Definitely a sipper, but another incredibly interesting, complex and challenging beer from Avery. B+
J.W. Lees/Vintage Harvest Ale 1998
Speaking of J dub, this one was a sweet, very syruppy brew with lots of fruit flavors and a caramel richness to it. Again, tastes like a condensed, no-hop barley wine to me. Really feels like it was just sitting around for about 10 years (which it has). A bit of alcohol charecter, more like a brandy though. Another sipper, very interesting and have never had anything like it (till the Samael’s). B+
Thirsty Dog/Siberian Night Imperial Stout
Very solid imperial stout. Nothing stands out, but definitely cannot find a fault. Dark, roasted, some hops, what more can you ask for? B+
Oskar Blues/Ten FIDY
Another well produced imperial stout. I really love this style and can’t complain one bit about this beer. Comes in a can too! Nothing really takes it to the next level, but I can’t fault a beer for being a perfect representation of a style. A-
I had a lot more to go, but a study break took me away for a while. Hopefully I will be back with pictures and more reviews!
