Snow Day

Posted on by
Reply

Brewery:

New Belgium Brewing Company

Aroma:

Huge Cascade Blast of hops give this beer a wonderful nose

Appearance:

Deep brown with nice frothy head. Just shy of black.

Flavor:

The beer starts with the cascade nose. First drink you get a chocolate bitterness from the chocolate malts combined with a large bitter hop presence. The malts leave a toasted flavor on the tongue as the beer warms in your mouth. This is a very unique beer, but I like it. I think it is a good winter ale. It is a bit darker, but has the hop flavor I love. The beer doesn’t finish as expected. It taste thin at the end and doesn’t leave the chocolate notes I expected.

Mouthfeel:

Medium light

Overall Impression:

Great ale for winter and sharing with friends but won’t make the reserve collection. Somehow I don’t think that was the goal anyhow.

Comments:

I love the let it snow competition on their website. When drinking this ale post you pics here and upload them to New Belgium’s site to win glassware.

http://www.newbelgium.com/glassthatgives.aspx?section=upload

History:

Ingredients:

Their quote is:

“Dark caramel roasted Midnight Wheat braced with a serious load of Syrian Goldings, Centennial and Cascade hops”

Stats:

OG (Original Gravity):

FG (Final Gravity):

IBU (International Bitterness Units):

SRM:

ABV (Alcohol By Volume): 6.2%

Other Commercial Examples:

Double Jack IPA

Posted on by
Reply

Brewery:

Firestone Walker

Aroma:

Loaded with a brilliant hop nose, has hints of Amarillo, Simcoe and Cascade i think.

Appearance:

Perfectly bright amber color with impecable clarity

Flavor:

The beer has a remarkable dry finish that makes this one of the most drinkable Double IPA’s ever. The drink starts with the wonderful nose. Then you are welcomed to a dry bitter crisp base. The malts are not really present, but at the same time their sublety is remarkable. They add a perfect body to the beer. The best way to describe this amazing beer is a perfect tribute to balance allowing the hops to shine.

Mouthfeel:

Medium to light bodied with a dry crisp carbonation.

Overall Impression:

★★★★★

Favorite Brewery, Favorite Beer. I love it.

Comments:

History:

Won Gold back to back at the Great American Beer Festival

Ingredients:

Stats:

OG (ORIGINAL GRAVITY):

FG (FINAL GRAVITY):

IBU (INTERNATIONAL BITTERNESS UNITS):

SRM:

ABV (ALCOHOL BY VOLUME):

Other Commercial Examples:

American Amber Pale Ale

Posted on by
Reply

Brewery:

Brewzzi

Aroma:

Aroma smells like fresh Simcoe and Cascade

Appearance:

Cloudy orange amber

Flavor:

This beer taste great! I cant believe the aromas from a microbrew bar that doesnt seem to care about beer. The beer has a big bitter bite and a nice balanced malt base. It has the clean pale ale body and just a hint of flavor let the hops shine. The fermentation seems perfect.

Mouthfeel:

The beer is medium bodied and a little smooth for a pale ale. It pours with a nice creamy head that went to a small white ring quickly. They also nailed the carbonation.

Overall Impression:

Very surprising beer!

★★★★★

Comments:

History:

Ingredients:

Stats:

OG (ORIGINAL GRAVITY):

FG (FINAL GRAVITY):

IBU (INTERNATIONAL BITTERNESS UNITS):

SRM:

ABV (ALCOHOL BY VOLUME):

Other Commercial Examples:

Brewzzi Imperial Porter

Posted on by
Reply

Brewery:

Brewzzi

Aroma:

Mild roasted malty flavor but very light

Appearance:

Oil Black

Flavor:

Roasted malty base has good flavor. Very smooth. You can taste the alcohol with each drink. Slight biscut like flavor. Not a lot of bitterness or hop aroma. I expected a bit more. Has a good clean taste. I dont taste any flavors directly related to the yeast. It seems to fit the style except for being light on bitterness for an Imperial Ale.

Mouthfeel:

Smooth creamy full bodied. Decent head retention.

Overall Impression:

Not quite robust enough.

★★★★★

Comments:

History:

Ingredients:

Stats:

OG (ORIGINAL GRAVITY):

FG (FINAL GRAVITY):

IBU (INTERNATIONAL BITTERNESS UNITS):

SRM:

ABV (ALCOHOL BY VOLUME):

Other Commercial Examples:

 

Hop Head (Red Ale)

Posted on by
Reply

Brewery:

Green Flash Brewing Company

Aroma:

Nice Piney Hop aroma courtesy of a Amarillo dry hop.

Appearance:

Beautiful, Bright Amber Red. Perfectly clear and pours with a big foamy white head. The beer maintains good head retention.

Flavor:

The beer starts with the wonderful hop aroma as you bring it to your mouth. Then you taste a nice crisp bitterness provided by the hops. They do a great job balancing the malty red base. The beer is dry and crisp. Giving it a very drinkable body, but loaded with flavor. The beer challenges style guidelines masking a Red Ale that ferments clean with a big IPA hop bitterness/aroma combination.

Mouthfeel:

Oily, dry, crisp and medium bodied.

Overall Impression:

Wonderful beer. I love beers that challenge styles and leave a unique lasting impact. I would recommend this anytime.

★★★★★

Comments:

History:

Ingredients:

Stats:

OG (Original Gravity):

FG (Final Gravity):

IBU (International Bitterness Units): 70

SRM:

ABV (Alcohol By Volume): 7.0%

Other Commercial Examples:

Jai Alai

Posted on by
1

Brewery:

Cigar City Brewing Company

Aroma:

No major aromas noted quite odd for an IPA

Appearance:

Bright amber and perfectly clear

Flavor:

Good malty IPA has a bit of an English presence with the big malt body. It has some bitterness to it but lacks the defining aromas of ‘American IPA’s’.

Mouthfeel:

The beer is medium bodied, well carbonated and has good head rentention. The carbonation is soft on the tongue.

Overall Impression:

The beer is a good beer and too bitter for a pale Ale but seems to lack the aromas for a distinguished American IPA and doesnt have the British murkiness or hop flavors for that style.

Overall a good beer but not what i expected.

★★★★★

Comments:

History:

Ingredients:

Stats:

OG (ORIGINAL GRAVITY): 18

FG (FINAL GRAVITY):

IBU (INTERNATIONAL BITTERNESS UNITS): 70

SRM: 10

ABV (ALCOHOL BY VOLUME): 7.5%

Other Commercial Examples:

Mad Hatter India Pale Ale

Posted on by
Reply

Brewery:

New Holland Brewing

Aroma:

Big Spicy Floral Nose, not a typical American India Pale Ale Piney scent

Appearance:

Beautiful Cloudy Orange, pours with a huge head

Flavor:

The beer has a dry bitter taste. Very light toasted malt flavor, but hardly present with the hop bitterness. The beer doesn’t have a huge aroma when drinking. It taste tart, dry and almost a bit over carbonated.

Mouthfeel:

Tart, bubbly and medium bodied

Overall Impression:

This is a good IPA but not award winning in my opinion. Good head retention and uniquely fits the style.

★★★★★

Comments:

I think the beer is best when you let it sit out for a few minutes after pouring. I would serve it about 55 degrees for maximum flavor. Always store cold (Around 34).

I would love to try the Black version of this beer.

History:

Ingredients:

 

Stats:

OG (Original Gravity):

FG (Final Gravity):

IBU (International Bitterness Units):

SRM:

ABV (Alcohol By Volume): 5.25%

Other Commercial Examples:

Pinstripe Red Ale

Posted on by
Reply

Brewery:

Ska Brewing Company

Aroma:

Low to none

Appearance:

Hazy, Cloudy and Amber Orange

Flavor:

The beer is tart and has a hint of bitterness, but lacks a defining malt or hop flavor. The beer is extremely clean and seems like it is too cloudy for the taste. It is a definite session beer to enjoy.

Mouthfeel:

Medium Light

Overall Impression:

I love Ska Brewing. The beer is good, but not mind blowing. I was hoping for a bigger hopped west coast red style.

★★★★★

Comments:

History:

Ingredients:

Stats:

OG (Original Gravity):

FG (Final Gravity):

IBU (International Bitterness Units): 42

SRM: 9

ABV (Alcohol By Volume): 5.5 %

Other Commercial Examples:

El CuCuy

Posted on by
Reply

Brewery:

Marshall Brewing Company

Aroma:

Big hop aroma. Smells Piney and fresh

Appearance:

Black with minimal light passing through

Flavor:

The beer tastes like a standard IPA if drinking straight from the bottle. Each drink starts with the huge pine aroma’s from the hops and then a taste of bitterness is dumped on your  tongue. The hop oils seem present when drinking. The beer is well balanced and the carbonation seems to release lots of aromas. It also adds a dry crispness to the beer that helps accentuate the bitter hop flavors. Overall this is a wonderful Black IPA and worth drinking any time.

Mouthfeel:

Medium bodied, dry, and slightly oily

Overall Impression:

Wonderful Black IPA

★★★★★

Comments:

Ironically they don’t have this beer posted on their website.

I love the label on this beer. It has a great label with a mad hatter that looks like a hypnotic water painting. At the bottom the label reads: “Be good or you get caught Cucuy”

History:

Ingredients:

Stats:

OG (Original Gravity):

FG (Final Gravity):

IBU (International Bitterness Units):

SRM:

ABV (Alcohol By Volume):

Other Commercial Examples:

Black Jack

Posted on by
Reply

Brewery:

Left Hand Brewing Company

Aroma:

Not much aroma

Appearance:

Deep Chocolate, light barely passes through

Flavor:

Very crisp tart chocolate flavor. The beer isn’t bold or have the usual roasted barley flavors associated with a Porter, but it is very well balanced.

Mouthfeel:

Medium bodied and tart

Overall Impression:

A very good beer, but seems to lack a defining flavor.

★★★★★

Comments:

2007 Australian International Beer Awards

History:

Ingredients:

Malts: Pale 2-row, Crystal, Chocolate, Munich and Wheat

Hops: Magnum and US Goldings

Stats:

OG (Original Gravity):

FG (Final Gravity):

IBU (International Bitterness Units): 35

SRM: 40

ABV (Alcohol By Volume):

Other Commercial Examples: