Tag: review

Posted on

Featured Review – Deep Thoughts About Hops

I got a nice care package from Three Weavers Brewing with an exciting single hop beer, featuring Simcoe.

This pale ale pours a vibrant yellow. Pine and earthiness are first to make their presence known followed by a minor note of grapefruit. For a pale ale, Deep Thoughts has a strong layer of bitterness to it while still being lighter in body. Additional citrus notes come through as the beer warms up making the flavor profile more complex.

I am hoping that maybe, down the road, there will be a mixed 4-pack each can featuring a different hop.

Posted on

Featured Review – Nature Nut from Athletic Brewing

Peanut butter beers are the rage right now, but what would an N/A one taste like? Let’s see what Athletic Brewing can do with Nature Nut a collaboration with Justin’s Nut Butters.

Double N pours a nearly black color. The aroma has a slight peanut butter aroma to it. Akin to the smell when you stir up a natural peanut butter when first opened. Again, Athletic has made a beer that does not taste thin like others in this category. There is a bit of a cherry note amidst the carbonation that hits upon first taste which quickly leaves and then a pleasant but light peanut tastes lingers.

Posted on

Review- Elevensies from Eagle Rock Brewery

Happy 11th birthday (a little belated) to trailblazing LA brewery Eagle Rock and now let’s check out their celebration of 11…

Elevensies pours a close to dark orange. This is a cheek warmer for sure. 11 hops including the new Altus were used for this anniversary Triple IPA that tops the scales at not 11 IBUs but 111 of them. Initially a little hot and that ABV obscures a dark cherry type of flavor that I am getting.  Maybe caramelized pineapple?  Either way it is nicely sharp at the beginning of the sip and then glides into the slight burn.

Posted on

Featured Review – Still Black Tuesday from The Bruery

We have reached the final fun beer from The Bruery. Still Black Tuesday a “plain” barrel-aged version of the classic. This is literally a still beer while definitely in the realm of Black Tuesday. More wine in character.  A fascinating counterpart to the bourbon barrel-aged version. Wood and oak are not particularly present but the beer is still very layered. Almost to the point of soured stout. A vinous near licorice flavor profile. It is a beer that doesn’t reveal the very high alcohol content until you have been drinking a bit.

Posted on

Review – That Track is a Groove from Radiant Beer Co.

I finally snared a can from the new Anaheim brewery, Radiant Beer Co. The vinyl referencing That Track is a Groove West Coast IPA.

This IPA pours a big, bright yellow color.  Snappy and effervescent on the tongue at first. Initially pine but a lighter burst of a creamy citrus jumps in to take over. Dare I say, more juicy than West Coast. Dare I say further that it strays into milkshake territory. There is a little bit of palate hop attack but it then turns soft. Not I need a bad way but there seems to me a bit of style drift from West Coast.

Posted on

Four Years of Past Anchor Christmas Beers

Time to snap our fingers and enter the Tardis to try (4) of Anchor Brewing’s past Merry Christmas Ales.

15

Lots of gunk at the bottom of the bottle. Has the makings of a little sour barleywine.  Cherry flavor note and a Port sorta nose to it make this interesting but it certainlyturneda corner into bad territory.  This is pretty close to just needing a few ounces to get the full picture. 

16

ABV jumps a full percentage point from 5.5% in 2015 to 6.5% this year. Poursa bit darker to me as well. Little more tree spice here that I am used to from this beer but I like it that way. The sour turn is beginning to show but this is a much more full beer caught in the nick of time. 

17

Nice woodsy aroma upon opening the bottle.  Faint hit of chocolate and spice in the first sip.  Nice amount of bitterness too. The espresso lacing on the side is quite pretty as well. Gettin a slight barleywine note in the background. 

18

Smoother. Less jagged edges to this year with the red banded label.  Malt lead close to a porter feel. Pours a garnet color. A little bit of a fruit taste. Leaning to cherry. Oddly this seems to have aged worse than the previous two years. Feeling like it is going to tip into sour soon. 

Posted on

Review – Two from The Crac Brewery

I scurried down to Carson to to-go some beers from one of the newest breweries in the L.A. area, Crac and brought back a pair to try and here’ve is my review…

AphrodisiCrac.  Smooth taste.  Has a touch of smoke, coffee and just the right amount of salinity.  All tied together into a beer ver I like what normally comes in 16ounce cans.

The Bollox. Very nice example of a barleywine.  Has a bit of floral aromatics but the cheek warming ABV and the nice punch of hops works really well together. A dash of caramel here too that ties it together. 

There were three other beers on offer and if these two are any indication, they will be pretty good.

Posted on

Featured Review – Curuba from Cerveceria del Pueblo

On Tibet the fourth and final CdP beer to be reviewed this month, and it is a tart fruited Ale, Curuba. This beer pour some a hazy IPA orange color. Tartness is at a really nice level. Nice zing but the fruit notes which are mostly berry, do not get overwhelmed. Balance is there. Getting strawberry, almost Starburst notes. Pretty close but this slides into a second place finish to the Gaviota coffee beer.

Posted on

Featured Review – Ambar Amber Ale from Cerveceria del Pueblo

How will the third CdP beer fare in the rankings? Let’s find out…

You just do not see amber ales out in the wild often, so I was anxious to try Ambar. Pours with a big fluffy head that disappears super quick to practically nothing. Nice golden orange color. I get a light toffee aroma from this one. First taste is sweet but the bubbles scrape some of that away to leave a pleasant malt flavor.

Ambar outpaces the pale but falls short to the coffee beer due to that sugar forward note.