Category Archives: Beer Reviews

Monomoy Kriek – Cisco Brewers Inc. – The Woods – Nantucket, MA

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IMG_2080-2Brew: Monomoy Kriek

Brewery: Cisco Brewers Inc.

Style: Sour/Wild Ale

Pours a beautiful crimson violet that permeates the head creating a rosy tint.  The nose is packed with tart cherry.  The cherry flavor has a broad spectrum ranging from crisp and ripe to sweet and sour.  The barrel aging adds an oaky edge to this impressive creation.   The tartness is mouthwatering and epitomizes a great sour.  The acid adds a fine balance to the fruit flavors. This kriek* is an undeniable testament to the style.  I was pleased to find a serendipitously fresh batch of this in Northampton, MA at a bar called the Dirty Truth.  Lambics and associated fruity sour beers tend to have low ABV but this beer registers at an honorable 6.7%.   This kriek is a great choice for a night out or as a morning companion for a plate of chicken and waffles.  According to the seller this cherried Flemish sour was aged for 2 years, 10 months on sour cherries, I must say it was worth the wait.

* Kriek is a word of Flemish origin that refers to a cherry-infused style of Belgian beer, fermenting a Lambic (Belgian fruit style) with sour Morello cherries.

Lemon Cello (Limoncello) IPA – Siren Craft Brew / Hill Farmstead / Mikkeller – United Kingdom

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This beer is as difficult to describe as it is easy to enjoy. The nose is thick with lemon and citrus with a slight air of Maltiness. The taste centers around lemon with a background of citrus and the tropical fruit beginnings of the hops. For me it was important to note that the tartness instead of puckering was mouthwatering and truly satisfying. As these tastes manifest, the hops become more apparent and the all star cast of this experience fully reveal themselves. Any fan of IPAs always enjoys an IPA with something new to offer, this beer is it. I have never had a beer with such tartness, well rounded flavor, and a proper ABV for a sour beer. This collaboration between Hill Farmstead, Mikkeller and Siren Craft Brew delivers a truly amazing, scrumptious, distinctive IPA. ABV 9%.

Seller Description: This is a truly different beer. The concept was to develop the flavour and mouthfeel of Limoncello and fuse with the carbonation and lemony hop hit of an IPA. Using pale and wheat malts, the base beer goes through a 24 hour sour process to add to the tartness of the beer. Tons of lemon zest and juice are added to the boil along with all the citrusy lemony hops available

La Luna Rossa – Birrificio Del Ducato – Italy

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IMG_1724Brew: La Luna Rossa

Brewery: Birrificio Del Ducato

Style: Sour/Wild Ale ABV 8%

Pours a violet amber with a nose of cherry, dark fruit and berries. This beer comes in at 8% and is a refreshing reminder that sour beers reminiscent of lambics can be more than fruity and light. La luna rosa has depth and a mouthwatering tartness to support the claim. Notes of black cherry, cherry, and raspberry permeate this libation yielding to that puckering thought-provoking taste only great beers can achieve. If you desire a brew that is not only authentic and unique but one that can satisfy your palate, seek out La Luna Rossa barrificio del ducato. It might be hard to find because it is produced in small batches with painstaking precision. It can also be expensive but keep searching if you find an absurd price tag, good carriers will have no trouble moving this exceptional product at a fair price, except no imitations, especially in the face of the sour beer connoisseur. Long live lactobacillus.

Seller Description:  The start is a sour base which has undergone at least 2 years of mixed fermentation with acetic and lactic bacteria as well as Brettanomyces strains. Amarena and morel cherries are then added for additional flavor for at least 6 months. The beer is then blended with part L’Ultima Luna and part young beer and poured into numbered bottles indicating the year of the curvee. 12 more months of maturation in bottle are required before entering the market.  La Luna Rossa resembles a Flemish red based kriek beer and is extraordinarily complex and elegant. Lovers of this blend find it hard to forget.

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The Passion of the Weiss – Schilling Craft Brews – Northampton, MA

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The Passion of the WeisseBrew: Passion of the Weiss

Brewery: Schilling Craft Brews

Style: Berliner Weissbier

This Double Berliner Weisse pours a beautiful golden tone of cadmium yellow. The passion fruit nose is poignant and mouthwatering, ushering fourth a sip of tartness that can only be described as mindblowing. This Berliner packs quite a punch and emanates the tropical fruit flavor and tartness of its namesake. It is a beer that truly delivers with brilliant sourness, passion fruit flavor that is by no means eclipsed by its tartness, background notes of tropical fruit and citrus, and a perfect level of carbonation. Also, The sheer thought of integrating a fruit that possesses its own qualities of tartness into a sour beer such as a Berliner is unmitigated genius. The Passion of the Weiss was fermented with passion fruit and double brewed or ‘long aged’ in a small batch so it has a higher ABV than your traditional Berliner. For any connoisseur of beer sour beers are a treat and a delight, they explore new avenues of taste and new possibilities in the world of craft beer.

This Berliner comes from Mike Schilling, an expert brewer and creator of thought provoking beers, who consistently creates beers that are as interesting as they are delicious. This beer, I am sorry to say, is not available commercially. In order to find a libation with taste of this magnitude one must locate Mike Schilling and gain access to his stores or find out what new brew is on the horizon. ABV 6.2%

Lagunitas Little Sumpin’ Sumpin’ Ale – Lagunitas Brewing Company – Petaluma, CA

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DSC_0481 Pours a clear bright gold with  snow white head.  Aromas of citrus, grapefruit, jackfruit, and hoppiness dominate the nose as well as background floral aromas.  Underlying spice contributes to the complexity of this beer and blends very well with the fruit flavors and hoppiness.  The drinkability of Little Sumpin’ Sumpin’ is a testament to the expert use of hops.   When I first tasted this beer I was taken aback with how amazingly balanced and full of flavor it was.  I literally said “damn!”.  This is a beer that you can drink all day and still treasure every sip. 

I had no idea Little Sumpin’ Sumpin’ is a wheat ale when I first tried it (can you believe it?).  Lagunitas single handedly redefined wheat beers with the way they crafted this ale.  It is in fact a far cry from what many call “wheat beers”.  Unlike any wheat ale, It is brewed with 50% wheat malt which gives the beer its depth and sweetness and “C”- hops* that contribute the fruit flavors and hoppiness.   Little Sumpin’ Sumpin’ was a limited release until its unanimous approval nationwide inspired the brewers to make it a permanent addition to the lineup.   Standing strong at 7.5% ABV it has some sass and is true to its name delivering a “Little Sumpin’ Sumpin'”

Seller Description: A truly unique style featuring a strong hop finish on a silky body. A filtered pale wheat ale that is great for both IPA and wheat beer fans.

* “C” – Hops are any of the strains of hops that begin with the letter C, most notably Cascade, Chinook, Centennial, and Colombus.  According to experts, this beer uses them all.

Sweetwater India Pale Ale – Sweetwater Brewing Company – Atlanta, GA

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photo 5 (2)-2-2 Pours a brassy chestnut color, has a very fruity nose with sweet herbal, floral aromas.  Honey and a slight malty molasses flavor are present as well as the stronger lemon zest,  grapefruit, and tropical fruit flavors that emanate from the earthy hops.  The flavor can be slightly tart or sour but maintains an impressive smoothness.  Sweetwater’s IPA epitomizes a great IPA, it has depth, hoppiness, West coast character but maintains a clean drinkability.

Seller Description:  This mammoth India Pale Ale is loaded with intense hop character and subjected to an extensive dry-hopping process. Our IPA is unfiltered, leaving all the natural flavors intact.  ABV 6.3%

Gillian – Goose Island Brewery – Chicago, IL

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Gillian - Goose Island Brewery - Chicago, ILThis Saison/Farmhouse ale pours with a fizzy head and an opaque golden color. It is fruity with a very slight white pepper flavor, the strawberry is also noticeable but a very pleasant cider-like apple/apricot taste is more present in the taste and aroma . The honey is a wonderful background note contributing to the tartness. Beers that are tart and sour are my favorite and the large variety of sour styles are some of the most complex, exciting, creative beers available.  At ~$30 a bottle, Gillian is quite an expensive beer but like any delicious and unique bottle of wine, if the flavor is something special and enjoyable, it is definitely worth the price.

Bottle Description: Gillian is a Belgian Style Farmhouse Ale that brings together fresh ingredients sourced locally from family farms in Michigan and Illinois. Gillian is partially aged in wine barrels with 10,000 pounds of strawberries, 4,000 pounds of honey and white pepper. Gillian is 9.5% alcohol by volume and develops in the bottle for up to 5 years.

Swamp Ape Double IPA – Florida Beer Company – Cape Canaveral, FL

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DSC_0009Pours a golden orange with aromas of citrus and funky tropical fruit. A little spicy with a background maltiness, this beer is dominated by fruit flavors and a noticeable liquor taste.  The fruit flavors dominate with slight tastes of pumpkin and gourd flavors.

This beer is great when Fresh… but is Not great when it is Not fresh.  According to bad reviews outside of Florida it seems Swamp Ape is only to be enjoyed when it is fresh or has been well cared for.  Who knows if it is sitting on store shelves to long, or if it is subject to a transformation along the transcontinental journeys but regardless, people are hopping on the bandwagon to say negative things about this beer.

The truth is:  If you have the privilege of tasting this beer when it is FRESH it will be great.  Sadly, when it is not fresh… it is flat, the head dissipates in seconds and it has very little taste in general, and this is what many have experienced.  Fresh Swamp Ape is fruity, has a great head, a nose encompassing a range of citrus scents, nice hoppy flavors with complex depth, and a smooth funky West Coast IPA finish.

Seller Description:  Florida Swamp Ape IPA is an Imperial IPA, The fresh and lively hop character is derived from using 5 distinct varieties of hops.  This beer has an intense hop bitterness., Flavor and aroma balanced by complex alcohol flavors,  moderate fruity esters and a medium malt character.

Justin Blåbær – Evil Twin Brewing – Denmark

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JustinBlaeberThis Berliner Weissbier pours a purple amber color with a rich sweet and sour blueberry nose.  This beer is true to the sour and acidic nature of the style but with exceedingly pronounced flavors of fruit.  Justin Blåbær has a strong and pronounced blueberry flavor that dominates along with hints of raspberry and lemon, the dark and sweet fruit is sour in a poignant yet pleasant way.  The tartness and overall blueberry flavor of Justin Blåbær is not contrived, it is something to treasure sip by sip.

The Berliner Weissbeir is one of the most popular and most appreciated sour beers and one of my favorites.  With unknown and mystical origins pertaining to Jusitn Beiber, Evil Twin’s excellent execution of a Berliner Weiss  is a success.

Seller Description:  OMG! It’s JUSTIN BLABAER!!! If you have “Blabaer Fever,” then this is the only cure. We stuffed so many blueberries into this beer- it’s going to make you shout, “Oh, Baby!” ABV 4.5%

BeerLao – Dark Lager – Lao Brewery Co. – Laos

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Beerlao BeerLao Dark pours an amber/brown, almost mahogany, color with an earthy, toasted, malty nose.  This European Pale Lager is an extremely unique and complex Asian beer,  it imparts roasted malty flavors, a bready taste, and sweet background notes of caramel.   Beerlao has a smooth chestnut flavor and an overall nuttiness  that contributes to the complex, malty experience.  Truly one of the most well-rounded, creative, and successful uses of malt I have found in any Asian beer, these flavors are definitely more reminiscent of a brown ale or stout. A must try.

Beerlao Dark can be a hard beer to find, it is often mistaken for Beerlao Lager which is more widespread than the Dark. Beerlao Lager is a Gluten Free beer fermented from jasmine rice, the taste is more typical of an average Asian pilsner or a wheat beer.  It serves as a great alternative for the Gluten-Intolerant but the taste and style does not compare to the Dark Lager.

Seller Description:  Beerlao Dark is an award winning beer brewed with the finest ingredients and roasted malt. A full-bodied tasted experience with a golden brown color.  ABV 6.5%