5.29 - More Florida Beer

Here's some more that the mother person had brought back from Florida..

Florida Beer Company - Key West Southernmost Wheat

a 5.1% ABV and 16 IBU Witbier.  This sounds both pretty dang cool and like it could be a disaster at the same time.. so I'm gonna try this first so I'm not potentially let down after having some (maybe) good beers.  It's a very cloudy yellow along the lines of white grapefruit juice.  The main aroma is yeast, spice and the wheat.  There's touches of the key lime and some other tropical fruits (mango, pineapple, etc)  It's a surprisingly full, yet light beer with the Belgian yeast and spice characteristics taking center stage, but also playing along with a nice tart lime note.  It's like a Wit mixed with a small part Berliner Weisse.  It's sweet, a little sour...  just what you'd expect from the melding of the two, it that was what you were told to expect.  A nice little surprise of a beer for sure

- - 7 Hops!

Florida Beer Company/Ybor Gold - Ybor Gold Amber Lager
a 4.6% ABV 22 IBU Amber Lager.  An old coppery and very hazy pour..  big fluffy head.  Light, sweet caramel malts, some wheat.. dry hay aroma.. only very faint grassy hops present.  It's slightly creamy, but light and crisp at the same time..  definite wheat here.  Herbal and grassy hops at the forefront and in the finish.  It starts mellow and full of caramel then comes in a bit more crisp with some honey sweetness but slightly light and watery.  Some nice aspects to this, but not clean enough for the style.

- - 6 Hops!

5.29 - All Day Every Day

Ever had one of those days where you need a kick-you-in-your-ass beer, but don't actually want to be knocked on your ass? Flavor sans ridiculous alcohol?

Founders - All Day IPA Session Ale

a 4.7% ABV 42 IBU IPA..  whether or not this one would constitute a session beer..  well, many would certainly debate that.  But it's certainly far lower in alcohol than the industry standard craft IPA.. actually fairly close to light beer status.  Either way, the lower the alcohol, the more you can drink without making bad life decisions.  We're starting to see many more craft styles with the lower ABV..

This has a great, crystal clear golden pour and perfect fluffy head. I'd almost suspect this to be a lager by pour alone.  The nose is just lovely.. tons of pine and fresh-cut grass.. very faint sweet caramel and citrus in the background.  This is a crazy clean beer.. super crisp and tons of flavor for such a light body.  More of that fresh-cut grass, some citrus and pine hops.  It's all citrus and hops.. there isn't much to a malt body which surprisingly works well for this IPA.  Just a touch of sweetness towards the end with a great bitter bite.  It's sort of a beginner's IPA and a great 'session' IPA

- - 8 Hops!

5.28 - Terrapin Night

soooo remember that trip to Atlanta last year.. well it turns out I forgot some of the beer I had brought back with me!  Oops!  And those 2 beers happened to be IPAs...  well, shit.  Did they hold up?

Terrapin - Hop Karma Brown IPA

a 6.0% ABV 65 IBU melding of a hoppy Brown and a west coast-style IPA.  Copper/nutty brown pour and an off-white/pale tan head.  Just what you'd expect from the style - chocolate, faint coffee, and nutty notes, with some piney and citrus hops on the nose.  Surprisingly, for a lower ABV IPA, the age hasn't affected this that much.  It may have lost some of the citrus notes, but a hefty amount of pine still remains and may actually go better with the Brown Ale flavors now than it did when it was fresh.  Rich nutty malts, some sweeter caramel, pecan and chocolate notes.. there's a little burnt coffee/molasses under it all that balances out the rather (still ) strong bitterness.  Great balance, each style plays off each other incredibly well.  A slightly different beer when fresh, but still another reason why I wish Terrapin was distro'd up here.

- - 7 Hops!

Terrapin - Hopsecutioner IPA
7.3% ABV and 78 IBUs.  I'm not the biggest proponent of 'you must drink a beer incredibly fresh or else it's no good' mindset.  Yes, a lot of IPAs are for sure better within the first month of their life.. but they're never actually BAD after 4, 7, 9 months..  That being said, I'm a touch worried about this one simply because of how long it's been since I was in ATL.   Still a nice hazy golden orange pour, minimal head..  tons of citrus and tropical fruit hops in the nose, subdued pine and herbs and toffee-sweet malts.  Yes, they've probably faded a bit, and this beer is not the hop-bomb that the name and description suggest, but oh, don't you worry baby birds.. the hops are still very much present.  Floral hops mainly in the body with touches of citrus and pine from sip to sip.  It's got an herbal, grassy, earthy character that stands out from the lighter pale malts.  Not an Imperial by any means, so the malts don't need to be crazy big, but they're still a bit timid in this beer.  A very good IPA, probably better when fresh for sure, but still very good...  age ain't all that bad!

- - 7 Hops!

5.27 - Florida Avenue

So my mom took a trip to FL not too long ago and I asked her to bring back any Florida-brewed beer.  She had a few gems.. I'm saving those for a bit later.  I've never heard of Florida Avenue.. so let's see what they got!

Florida Avenue (Cold Storage Craft Brewery) - Florida Avenue Ale

A 4.7% ABV 11 IBU Pale Wheat Ale.  The website doesn't say much and is already giving me weird vibes.  A pale golden yellow pour.. poor head retention.  There's not much to the nose.. some stale crackers, citrus and a little bit of grassy hops.  Something else sorta weird, like fruity cereal extract..  a worse version of Lienenkugel's..  The taste is very flat and one-dimensional.  Each sip is the same through and through (consistency at least???)  there's some wheat, a touch of yeast and a sweet, artificial fruity/citrus aspect.  It's very clean, very light.. but very indicative of an adjunct beer.  The first few sips screamed macro ownership.. I tried searching and came up empty in that claim.  Mediocre wheat, at best

- - 4 Hops!

Cold Storage Craft Brewery - Florida Avenue Blueberry

a 4.5% ABV 10 IBU Blueberry Wheat Ale.  Now.. it's no secret that I'm no fan of beer when blueberry is a part of it.  Well, maybe a secret to you, whomever you are.. but now it's not!  A hazy golden yellow pour.. somehow even less head than the regular Ale.  Artificial blueberry notes come off this.. and more of that stale cracker found in the other beer.  Smells like those mini blueberry muffins you buy in the bread aisle.  The taste is below acceptable.  Total adjunct beer here.. everything tastes fake.. muted..  bleh  No more need be said.  

- - 2 Hops (for at least having no signs of macro ownership

Cold Storage Craft Brewery - Florida Avenue IPA
a 5.6% ABV and 50 IBU IPA.  2 huge duds from this brewery..  I got 3 beers..  holding out a little hope for this last one..  a much nicer pour and finally a head on this beer.  There's still some weird malt aromas coming through on this, but a halfway decent hop profile is finally present!  Very faint, and not all that enticing of an aroma.. but finally hoppy at least.  As with the other 2 beers, this seems to be at the macro end of the flavor spectrum...  the malts are very sweet and don't stand out.  The hops are very mild and seems like someone mixed a low-end IPA with an Extra Pale...  it's finally halfway enjoyable at least.  Not great..but halfway enjoyable.  Not much else describes this beer.. just halfway enjoyable

- - 5 Hops!

5.26 - Texas in a Can

Starting to finally make a dent in my collection and getting around to some of my beermail beers!

Karbach Brewing Co - Weisse Versa Wheat

a 5.2% ABV 15 IBU Hefeweizen.  It's getting more and more common to see more and more beers in cans, but I have yet to see a Hefeweizen!  And it was an extra in a trade, so this is clearly a win!  An awesome hazy golden yellow/orange.  There's basically no head, but it retained it's carbonation nicely throughout.  There's some decent banana notes, bready malts, noticeable sweetness, with the expected orange and coriander.  Honestly, there's nothing crazy about this Hefe, but that's a good thing here.  This is a full, creamy, smooth and surprisingly true-to-tradition Hefeweizen.  No frills, no surprise tastes, not overpowering.  It's got great balance between the fruity/tropical notes, malty sweetness and yeasty tones.  From Texas comes a great take on a German beer.. who'da thunk!?

- - 8 Hops!

5.25 - Post #200 - Number Beer

200th Post!  Far far more beers reviewed than that.. and since I've started using untappd about 8 months ago, WAY more beers consumed than I'd care to admit.  Cheers!

Surprisingly enough, post #200 on here corresponds with a number beer..

Dogfish Head - Sixty-One

a 6.3% ABV 60 IBU IPA brewed with Syrah must.  Basically just take the 60 Minute IPA and add the must   at some point.  It's a crazy rich red pour with a nice, yet minimal white head.  This is very subtle, aroma-wise, for an IPA and especially for DFH.  The 60 Minute nose - piney, bitter, and malty - is there for sure, with a faint wine sweetness... some tannin, some berry.  Not as much as I would have hoped for.  It wasn't aged in wine barrels, so I may be hoping for too much here.  It has a bit of the Syrah in the taste, but it's sorta like a 60 Minute with a little bit of berry Juicy Juice added in, almost spoiled.  It's not as hoppy as their 60 Minute and is lacking in the wine department, a little over-carbonated, too.  This may be from the first go-round of this beer and maybe it'll come into itself as the beer continues to be brewed.  For now, it's a let down.

- - 5 hops!

5.24 - Nashoba Makes Beer? AND Cider?

So, like a month ago, I went out to Nashoba Valley Winery with the girlfriend to help her get wine for her Mom's surprise birthday party and what do I see...?  Well well well, it seems they do a little brewing out there, too!

Nashoba Valley Brewery - Bolt 117
a 5.2% ABV 'Pale Lager'  a super clean, golden straw pour.. a very nice pure white head on it.  The nose is unlike the appearance, however, and is very lackluster.  It does have clean lager-esque wheat and malt notes, but has something funky underneath.. a weird grassy, barnyard type funk, but not in the good way you'd expect from Brett for example.  It just seems off.. and the taste isn't any better really.  It has a decent malt profile.. super toasty crackers, like graham without the sweetness.  But there's little else.. a bit of that weird grassy funk, no real hops, and weird, fruity stale tastes..   I had read up on some halfway decent reviews.. maybe a bad batch/bottle or a really old bottle..   It's worth a shot to try some of their other stuff if I get the chance, but this wasn't that great

- - 4 Hops!

Nashoba Valley Winery - New England Cider
a 6.0% ABV dry Cider - well, this is worth a shot too!  But dear sweet baby Jesus on a stick!  That looks like water!  Ok, maybe water with a touch of lime juice added...  but seriously, I've never seen any beer or cider this damn white.. good god!  The nose is a typical cider nose, sweet crisp apples, touches of white wine and floral notes.  But here comes the pale again..  this has almost no taste.  It's like cheap, mass-produced baby apple juice is watered down ten-fold with water and given a little carbonation.  Yes, there's fresh-pressed apples and apple skin, there's a little citrus, a little tart.. but you've really gotta let this sit in your mouth for a while to discern anything from it.  There's no way this is a bad bottle or anything.. this just isn't good!

- - 2 Hops

5.23 - Now Entering: Bourbon County

so today sucked.   liked, straight out SUCKED.  But I won't whine.. no one wants to hear anyway, right?  So let's deal with the problems the way any 20-something does.. DRINK!

No really, though.. that's not the way to deal with your problems (waxing philosophical).  But to put me in a better mood, I'm cracking open a beer I have long sought-after, and possessed for a fair amount of time...

Goose Island - Bourbon County Brand Stout (2012)

a MONSTER Bourbon barrel aged Imperial Stout at 15% ABV and 60 IBUs.  Probably considered one of the forerunners of barrel-aged stouts and a relative benchmark for this style, I'm stoked to finally try one.  It pours pitch-black, essentially no head.  No surprise here.  From the moment the cap is popped, as it's being poured, as it sits..  oh lordy lordy!  The nose on this is magnificent!  There's tons of dark chocolate, coffee, molasses, dark fruits, maple syrup, vanilla, oak, touches of smoke.. there's simply too much to list and I don't want to sound pretentious trying to list it all.  It's just wonderful.  The body and taste is pure silky smooth heaven.  It's just so effin' smooth... the purest melted rich chocolate melded with dark roast coffee and a shot of bourbon added in  (let it be known I am NOT a bourbon guy at all.. scotch is tops in that realm for me, I'd even drink a wine cooler before I go for straight bourbon.. but whatever).  The alcohol is very very very well hidden.. it drinks more like a 7-8% regular stout.  Crazy.  This is so friggin complex I can't even being to fathom it, but is unbelievably balanced.  So so good..  the finish makes you take another sip, leading down a long, hard spiral into which the level of beer gets lower and lower and you try to savor each sip more and more.  Sweet chocolate, black cherries, touches of smoke and woody oak, bourbon, vanilla, roasty espresso, touches of alcohol.. basically perfection.  yep. said it.

- - 10 Hops!

5.21 - Spring Still Counts

It's still spring on the calendar for another month, so shut it.  Yeah, I missed truck day, and all of the actual spring training.. but the boys of summer gotta start in the spring and play on through.. don't they?

Ok ok.. that was a bit confusing and whatever.. let's get down to the beer

Cambridge Brewing Company - Spring Training IPA
a 6.0% IPA brewed to be a liquid embodiment of springtime.  And in Boston, springtime means Sox spring training and sun and everything in bloom..  This is a hazy sunshine pour, the head fades fairly quickly.  Citrus and grassy hops on the nose with sweet, pale malts.. like honey wheat pretzel sticks with a touch of light caramel.  The hops shine in this beer.. they literally make you think of spring.. super light.. very grassy and floral with hints of tropical fruit as it warms a bit.  It's light and crisp, super clean, just the right amount of carbonation with malt/hop balance.  I can't say any more than this simply.. fully.. wholly tastes like spring in a bottle.  Insane that CBC could brew this seasonal of a beer. SO good.

- - 8 Hops!

5.20 - Kick a Ginger Day

If you don't get the reference, we can't be friends.  Seriously.  Go watch some viral videos, the classic shit, and you'll get the reference.  As you may remember, a few months back, I took a trip to Montreal and stopped in/around Burlington, VT.  There's a crazy liquor store up there that always seems to have ridiculous closeout sales..  I think I snagged this one for $3.99 or something like that..

Foley Brothers - Native Ginger Wheat
Part of their Native lineup.. a 6.3% ABV pale ale brewed with fresh Vermont ginger.  A bright golden orange pour and voluminous head.. I had to wait a few times during the pour!  There's a ton of wheat coming off the nose with the unmistakable punch of ginger.. like sniffing the condiment from a tray of fresh sushi.  Nothing else really sticks out on the nose.  The first sip is harsh ginger.. there's a little malty sweetness near the end, but it's ginger through-and-through.  I'm figuring as it warms, I'd get more facets to this... but no.  There's a touch of grassy hops.. but it's wheat malts, a bit sweet.. and shit tons of ginger.  Hate to say this.. but I couldn't finish it.  Ginger just ain't my thang..  well, ginger in food/beer that is!

- - 4 Hops (for the effort)

5.17 - You Gettin' Short With Me, Boy?

Whoa, whoa, whoa..  is that a Short's?  In MA?!  well... a few months ago, Beer Advocate had their Extreme Beer Fest here in Boston.  One of the breweries visiting was Short's from MI.  And being awesome dude's they brought cases of a few of their beers for Boston beer-lovers to enjoy outside of the fest!

Short's Brewing - The Soft Parade

an 9.0% ABV 14 IBU "fruit-infused Rye Ale"  They use fresh raspberries, strawberries, blueberries and blackberries (pureed) in this.  The result?  A rich ruby pour, almost no head.. and TONS of tart fruit pouring from the glass.  Some funk comes off the pour..not much.  Besides that, there isn't much else to the nose.  It's extremely light for a 9% beer.  There's a touch of sour at the beginning, sorta sharp, almost acidic.  It borders on unpleasant, yet isn't.  Each fruit surprisingly finds a way to shine through at different moments.  There's touches of the booze as it warms with a little rye spice and sweeter, light malts.  It has moments that remind me of a homebrew.. then it has moments of greatness.  Not quite a sour, not quite a fruit beer..  this is just tasty!

- - 7 Hops!

                                    

 Short's Brewing - Huma Lupa Licious IPA
a 6.9% ABV  "140" IBU IPA  hmmm  140? really?  let's see!  Named after the scientific name for the hop flower, Humulus lupulus, it has a deep orange pour.. quickly fading head.  Holy hell this is stickier than Boston after the great molasses spill of 1919!  My nose hairs are basically getting stuck together just smelling this beer!  There's an absurd amount of piney and rich citrus hops in the nose.  Not much malt here at all.  The taste has a huge bitter bite that kicks your teeth in.. earthy, fresh, piney, super sticky..  these hops linger, kids.  If you don't like that, stay the eff away!  There's caramel and bready malts, but those are only here to give a little sweetness so you don't die from hop overload.  Not much in the way of the booze either.  The star is clearly the hops.. grapefruit and mango come out near the end, but still tons of pine, spice and grass.  It's sharp and sticky on the finish, a bit sweet.  Thank God I drank this second.. I may not be able to taste anything for days!

- - 9 Hops!

5.15 - Gettin My Bell's On

OK.. so here's the deal.  I got 3 each of Bell's Oberon and Two Hearted Ale last year on my birthday (just under 10 months ago) from the greatest bottle shop owners in New England.  Total hook up. Bomb!

I had 2 of each before November and had forgotten about the last one until recently.  If no one had noticed, I've had a major change of scenery in the backgrounds in the last 3 months.  Had to change living arrangements, short notice.  During the move, these became uncovered.  Did they hold up?  Comparing first and recent impressions...

5.14 - Are Pumpkins in Season?

Well, considering this wasn't released until October because they actually used FRESH pumpkins.. waiting a tad over 6 months isn't terrible...but it's not exactly great either.  Let's see how it held up!

Jack's Abby - Mom & Pop's Pumpkin Crop Lager

a 5.5% ABV 10 IBU Pumpkin Lager - 100 fresh pumpkins and 40 fresh gourds went into this bad boy.  A rich copper/orange pour with a nice long-lasting pure white head.  The nose is simply delectable!  This is fresh pumpkin pie for sure.. tons of fleshy pumpkin, malty graham crackers, some vanilla and a little bit of spice.  The taste follows suit - it's pumpkin/gourd forward as opposed to fake spice.  It's fairly light and effervescent for such a flavorful brew..there's just the right amount of cinnamon, nutmeg and other spices to remind you of Thanksgiving dinner with the crazy family.  There's bready and cracker malts that give the impression, unsurprisingly, of a pre-made pie crust.  Not overly sweet.. just a bit of vanilla and caramel.. a very clean finish.  JA just set the bar as to what Pumpkin beers should be!

- - 8 Hops!

5.10 - The End of Winter

All that remains of winter...

Saranac - 4059* Porter
a 5.2% ABV 43 IBU  -  the height of Porter Mountain in the Adirondacks, one of the highest peaks.. let's see if this lives up to it's namesake.  Great chocolate brown pour with roasty and chocolate malts off the nose.. faint coffee, English-style hops.   It's mildly sweet and smooth, a nice mix of milk and bitter chocolate with some sweeter toffee and caramel.  There's some faint smokey malts lingering towards the end.  This is roasty and earthy.. not overly sweet as some Porters can tend to be, more true-to-it's-roots than most

- - 8 Hops!

Saranac - Chocolate Lager

6.0% ABV and 15 IBU Lager.  Incredibly light.. this caught me off guard, more like a traditional Lager pour than you'd expect from anything with 'chocolate' in the name.  Malty nose similar to a typical Lager with just hints of cacao and hops.  Surprisingly crisp and slightly creamy, the lighter malts actually work well the hints of chocolate.  A decent citrus hop profile towards the finish that balances out this brew.. unique, but they kept it simple.  Very nice

- - 7 Hops!

5.9 - More Winter Saranac

We've been over this a million times.. get off my junk when it comes to drinking/posting on time.  Here's more from the Saranac Winter Sampler

5.8 - The Shadows and The Light

So Cambridge Brewing Company just released a beer that they've been aging for 8 years.. but not in normal fashion.. it's a blend of 3 different beers, barrel-aged, with samples placed in various sized and shaped glass carboys and left in the sun for random amounts of time, then brought back to the cellar.. over and over.. FOR EIGHT YEARS!  That shit ain't 'sposed ta be good for ya beeah!  Let's see what it did!

5.3 - Yard's pt II

so it's a while after the first Yard's post.. and a very long while since I was there.  Read the last post, asshole.  Life happens, I post accordingly.  Not like this is CNN or something.. deal with it

This is the 3 remaining from the 6er I brought back from Philly.. you better be OK with briefs again, cause that's all ya get

5.1 - Lebanese

Happy May!  On a not-so-happy note, I'm realizing life and all it includes is getting a bit consuming.. I'm falling behind on updating this..  I'm keeping my twitter, untappd and instagram rather up-to-date, as those only take moments to update..  so if you want instantaneous beers and such, search for @BacklashJesse on all of those.. if you can't find me, ask and we can talk.  What this means for here, is I'll be a bit delayed (but still tag the correct date) and a bit more direct/succinct posts on here.  Deal with it folks, life happens

961 Beer - 961 Lebanese Pale Ale
961 is actually the first craft/micro brewery to arise in Lebanon and is available in the US.  A 6.3% ABV pale ale brewed with thyme, sumac, chamomile, sage, anise, and mint.. this is certainly not your typical Pale Ale.  This pours similar to a lighter IPA and has basically no head.  A very unique nose on this one.. very herbal and earthy, somewhat spicy.  Taste follows suit with spicy, hoppy herbal profile.. the thyme, sage and mint really come through here.  There's a slight malt profile but the major players are definitely the herbs.  A great take on the Pale Ale style, it's reminiscent of the DFH/Stone/Victory Saison du Buff.  Excited to try the other beers in the 961 lineup!

- - 7 Hops!