The Drunken Polack

It would be very dangerous if this brewery was by me.  It would be to damn easy for me to walk in and get a growler full of goodness.  OK maybe it would be dangerous if any brewery was next to me.  But when it comes to good stuff these guys are 100% and when I think of a brewery that I would like to just stop by after work and pick up a few growlers this might be it.  I’ve had 4 beers from them and all have been right on spot.  Of course Mango and regular Masala Mama are fantastic but I got to try two of their rotating beers last week.  Thanks again to another beer trade.  Oh it’s so nice knowing people who live 5 miles away from the brewery.  But what the hell am I going to do with 4 empty Town Hall growlers.  First up is their American Pale Ale, Marmelade Sky.

Marmealade Sky is a easy drinking 4.9% American Pale Ale brewed with Amarillo hops and sweet orange peel.  Both of those ingredients come through really nice.  This one pours a dark amber color with a small one finger head.  Slight lacing throughout the glass.  The orange peel in this brew is what comes through the most.  Lemon and grapefruit from the Amarillo hops come in next but the peel is the key here and it really gives off a nice and inviting aroma. A strong caramel malt backbone finishes it off.

The taste is really more of the same.  I’ll first say that this is a fantastic sessionable beer.  Definitely a different take on a Pale Ale.  I’m finding myself stepping away from the stronger IPAs these days and really enjoying the smaller abv Pale Ales.  They can be just as hoppy and refreshing as a 7% IPA.  The citrus is first up just like in the smell.  Something I didn’t really pick up in the smell was the presence of some grassy notes.  I did pick it up in the taste.  The beer is rounded out by the lemon and grapefruit and caramel malt.  There really are a good amount of hops in this brew.  It’s noticeable with the very bitter aftertaste.

The mouthfeel is medium and creamy.  Goes down like a good APA should.

Overall this is a fantastic beer on a 90+ degree day.  Another winner from Town Hall.  You Minneapolis folks are damn lucky.

Found: Beer trade
ABV%: 4.9%
Price: N/A
Website: http://www.townhallbrewery.com/
What the company says: Well hopped American pale ale that is made with Amarillo hops and both bitter and sweet orange peel
Other beers to try from this brewery: Minneapolis Town Hall Brewery Masala Mama, Minneapolis Town Hall Brewery Abominable
Other beers to try within the same style: Sierra Nevada Pale Ale, Iron Hill Ironbound Ale
Rating: A-

While I really  liked the beer up above, this one just did it for me.  This a American Porter infused with a ton of fresh coffee.  This beer really reminded me of Williamsburg Alewerks Coffeehouse Stout and I think I enjoyed this one just a little bit more than the Williamsburg offering.

Abominable pours a very dark brown.  You would think it’s pitch black but it’s noticable when you’re pouring this stuff into a glass that it’s brown.  Small amount of head and no lacing.  Right off the bat you are blasted by really fresh coffee.  There really isn’t much more in the smell but the coffee but it’s enough.  It’s wonderful.  I could of sat there for hours just smelling this beer.

The taste has is more complex though and as you let it warm up, more and more comes out.  I love Coffeehouse Stout because it was like you were drinking breakfast.  Coffee and cream.  This made me feel the same way.  The fresh, strong coffee taste was complimented by cream, sweet chocolate, and roasted malt.  It’s just wonderful.  I could easily finished that growler that night.

The mouthfeel just added to the greatness.  Medium bodied and very creamy.  Went down perfect.

This is a beer I could get used to drinking.  It’s definitely one of the best coffee porters/stouts I’ve ever had.  The freshness was just amazing.

Found: Beer trade
ABV%: 4.9%
Price: N/A
Website: http://www.townhallbrewery.com/
What the company says: Robust American style porter brewed with the Yeti Coffee blend done by Peace Coffee right here in Minneapolis|
Other beers to try from this brewery: Minneapolis Town Hall Brewery Masala Mama, Minneapolis Town Hall Brewery Abominable
Other beers to try within the same style: Ballast Point Victory at Sea, Deschutes Black Butte
Rating: A

If you live in Virginia, you might be one depressed Craft Beer lover.  You see Virginia isn’t really well known for exactly having the best of the best of Craft Beer breweries.  We aren’t Colorado, California, etc.  Not even close.  But it just so happens that one brewery that resides only 45 minutes from me up highway 64 is really pumping out some decent stuff lately.  That brewery is Williamsburg Alewerks in you guessed it, Williamsburg, VA.  I first tried their stuff maybe 1 1/2 years ago.  Wasn’t really impressed.  They have a decent selection of year round beers.  Their seasonals were OK and their Brewmasters Reserve beers didn’t really do anything for me.  But lately they’ve really put out some fantastic stuff.  First up is their Coffeehouse Stout.

Coffeehouse Stout falls under their seasonal beer lineup.  Released in Winter, this is the first time this beer has seen the light of day.  Now if you read this blog a lot, you’ll know I really love Coffee Stouts.  The stronger the coffee the better.  While this isn’t exactly the strongest coffee stout out their it acts like a cup of coffee you would have with breakfast.  Not a chewing on coffee grinds kind of stout.  It mixes in coffee with a nice sweetness added in. 

Coffeehouse stout pours the usual pitch black color you’re going to get from a stout.  I’ve had this beer two ways.  From a growler and from a bottle.  I did get more of a head from the bottle and barely any from the growler but everything else was pretty much the same. 

The smell is pretty strong in coffee up front.  But underneath lies a certain sweetness.  A nice amount of cream.  Like I said up top, this is not the most coffee forward stout ever but it balances nice and acts like it’s an actual cup of coffee.

Taste is pretty much more of the same.  Up front is a good amount of roasted malt and coffee.  As the coffee wears off the sweetness comes through.  Nice cream and chocolate.  Ends with a tad bit of a bitter taste.

Mouthfeel is a little bit on the heavy side which was a nice surprise and it’s nice and smooth. 

Sitting at only 5.40%, this is probably the best session able coffee type stout I’ve ever laid my lips on.  A really nice treat from the guys at Williamsburg Alewerks.   Rumor is, they are taking this beer to a whole new level soon and making an Imperial version called Coffee Royale.  I can’t wait.

Found: Grape and Gourmet, Virginia Beach, VA
Price: Around 3 dollars a bottle and I think a growler fill was around 13 dollars
Website: http://williamsburgalewerks.com/
What the company says:This ain’t no Folgers! Our Winter seasonal has a nice coffee aroma and the flavor of cold Guatamala Antigua coffee with “a little “cream and sugar added. Delicious!
ABV%: 5.40%
Other beers to try from this brewery: Williamsburg Alewerks Colonial Wheat Ale, Williamsburg Alewerks Ironbound Ale
Other beers to try within the same style: Terrapin Depth Charge, Bell’s Special Double Cream Stout
Rating: A-

In this case I saved the best for last because I absolutely loved this beer.  What we have here is their Bourbon Barrel Porter.  They take their Rapadou Porter (or is it a similar porter like Rapadou?) and age it two months in Virginia Gentleman Bourbon Barrels.  What comes out is just a fantastic Bourbon Barrel beer.  If you’re a beer geek you all know how much we go crazy for barreled beers.  What’s nice is, it’s local and not horrible to get.  No standing in line at the brewery for hours and hours. 

This one pours an almost black color.  It’s instead a very dark brown.  A finger sized head is poured.  Dies down a little but sticks around for good retention.  The pour looks thick and oily. 

The aroma this beer gives off is just fantastic in my books.  A very sweet aroma filled with vanilla, caramel, dark chocolate, espresso, and of course the bourbon.  There is also a nice bit of alcohol in the nose but it’s not overwhelming and it doesn’t block the other great smells in this beer.  I knew I was in a treat.

So basically when I was done with this beer I said to myself “Damn this is one of the finest porters I have ever had” and well I still feel that way.  Some beers really smell amazing but lack in the taste department but this beer is the opposite.  I loved the taste just as much, maybe even more.  For me the bourbon hit my taste buds first.  Not overwhelming, maybe just perfect.  Next came in all the goodness that was in the aroma.  Chocolate and coffee come in next.  Chocolate covered coffee beans.  Yes I’ll take that any day.  Then comes in the caramel and vanilla.  It really adds some nice sweetness to the end and aftertaste.  The alcohol was definitely more present in the taste but in like the smell it didn’t get in the way.  The mixture of everything really made me want more after I was done. 

The mouthfeel is a little bit on the heavy side with a small amount of carbonation.  Thick and chewy. 

I fell in love with this brew.  Weird thing is I’ve had like 5 bottles of this stuff in my house and always used them as extras for trades.  I never tried it for myself until last week.  Now I’m sorry I gave all those bottles away.  I’m proud of my local brewery and will be supporting them from here on out.

Found: Grape and Gourmet, Virginia Beach, VA
Price: Around 7 dollars a bottle
Website: http://williamsburgalewerks.com/
What the company says:An Imperial Porter, brewed with Rapadou and aged for two months in Virginia Gentleman Bourbon barrels. The porter’s traditional flavors of coffee, chocolate, and caramel are complimented by vanilla from the oak and hints of bourbon. Drink now or cellar — it will just get better.
ABV%: ?
Other beers to try from this brewery: Williamsburg Alewerks Grand Illumination Ale, Williamsburg Alewerks Rapadou Porter
Other beers to try within the same style:Ballast Point Victory at Sea, Deschutes Black Butte XXI
Rating: A

Stone/Maui/Ken Schmidt Aloha Plenty – Stone just loves to collaborate with people and I have to say, so far so good.  I loved the Winter Warmer they made with Nogne-0 and Jolly Pumpkin and I also really liked the Tripel they did with Mikkeller and Alesmith.  But this one trumps them all.  This easily one of the best porters I’ve ever had.  Yes and the taste and aroma on this beer is really good but honestly the star of the show has to be the mouthfeel.  I’ll stop right there so I don’t ruin this little review.

Aloha Plenty pours a deep dark brown.  Almost black.  A huge tan head is poured but disappears to what you see above.  The aroma on this porter is fantastic.  Espresso up front with a nice sweet chocolate presence.  As you let the beer warm up a little you’ll notice some of the coconut.  This beer is also brewed with macadamia nuts.  The nutty aroma comes out just a little bit in the end.  It’s not huge and is barely noticeable.  The mixture of the espresso and sweetness is what makes the beer smell so damn good.

The taste is out of this world too.  Just like in the smell, at the beginning of this beer you are going to get the coffee/espresso taste.  As the beer hits the back of your throat, the chocolate pops in.  As it warms up the coconut plays more of a roll.  It sits back there with the chocolate to make a great combination.  The beer is definitely more balanced as it gets warmer.  Now I said above, the mouthfeel might just steal the show here.  It’s thick, very thick, and creamy.  It just coats the mouth and throat.  Easily the best mouthfeel in any porter I’ve ever had.

This beer is a big winner.  Stone, make this an all around beer please.

Found: South Bay Drugs, Imperial Beach, CA (Mail Order)
Price: 8-9 dollars a bottle
Website: http://www.stonebrew.com, http://mauibrewingco.com
What the company says: Here’s a link to the beers page http://www.stonebrew.com/collab/index.htm#coconut
ABV%: 8.50%
Other beers to try from this brewery: Stone Russian Imperial Stout, Maui Coconut Porter
Other beers to try within the same style: Deschutes Black Butte, Founders Porter
Rating: A

Stone/Brewdog/Cambridge Juxtaposition – This beer is a Pilsner.  No your eyes are not deceiving you.  Yes it’s a pilsner.  A black one.  That’s not where the weirdness ends.  Because this beer really doesn’t smell or taste like a pilsner to me.  I actually liked everything about this beer.  Why is that weird you ask?  Because I’m not really fan of the style.  Yeah I know, as a beer reviewer you have to put the hate for certain styles away and I always do but it still doesn’t mean I can’t like the style that much.  There are some pils I like.  Hi Prima Pils.  Now on to why this is such a weird beer.

First off, look at the picture above.  Yes it’s black.  Not like any Pilsner I’ve ever seen.  My pour left me with a huge fluffy, crater filled head.  Great retention and lacing.  Now the first time I had this beer, I was sitting at a bar with Joey from South Bay Drugs.  He split a bottle of this stuff with me.  It was his first time trying the brew also.  We both took a whiff and he asked me what I smelled.  The day earlier I went to Stone for a tour, I responded by saying “This smells like their brewery”  Meaning this smelled just like the hops I smelled at their brewery.  Strong aroma of citrus, grassy, piney hops.  Matching those hops was a rather large dose of alcohol.  Sitting behind that is some lemon, chocolate, and roasted malt.  Folks this is not a Pilsner.  At least this is not a Pilsner like I’ve ever had.

Once again the taste is hoppy.  Not as hoppy as it’s nose though.  The alcohol once again plays a big part in this beer.  I won’t say it got in the way but I will say it’s in there nicely.  Roasted malt and chocolate are more up front here.  Mouthfeel sits more on the medium bodied with a good amount of carbonation.

This is a strange brew that I ended up liking in the end.

Found: South Bay Drugs, Imperial Beach, CA (Mail Order)
Price: Around 8 dollars a bottle
Website: http://www.stonebrew.com, http://www.brewdog.com, http://cambridgebrewing.com
What the company says: Here’s a link to the beers page http://stonebrewing.com/collab/index.htm#juxtaposition
ABV%: 10.00%
Other beers to try from this brewery: Stone IPA, Brewdog Punk IPA, Cambridge Tall Tale Pale Ale
Other beers to try within the same style: Port Brewing Panzer Imperial Pilsner, Clipper City Small Craft Warning.
Rating: B+

Summer is over and wow did I drink a ton of great beers during my second favorite season (fall being my favorite)  Along the way some of those beers were just forgotten about or well I was to lazy to write about them.  So here’s some quick thoughts on some of those forgotten beers.

Stone Vertical Epic 07/07/07 Aged in Red Wine Barrels – When I visited Stone,  it was my goal to bring back some one off brews that I could enjoy in the hotel room.  I came back with two growlers.  One of them was the beer you see above.  I love their Vertical Epic line.  I enjoyed what the Red Wine barrels gave to this beer.  It added a bit of a sweet taste with a mixture of a smokey aroma.  Very nice to try something that you can’t buy in the stores

Rating: B+

Stone Old Guardian Aged in Red Wine Barrels -This beer was a little bit of a disappointment.  But it was still really nice to try.  The Red Wine gave the beer kind of an off taste.  I enjoyed the Vertical Epic just a tad bit more. Old Guardian is one of my favorite Barleywines ever.  I don’t think the Red Wine made it any better.

Rating: B

Alpine Exponential Hoppiness -This is one of the beers I came to San Diego to get.  The girlfriend and I took the 35 minute drive to Alpine on  one of our last days there.  I plan on posting some pics of the actual brewery soon but let me just say that it’s small.  Very very small.  If you blink, you miss it.  But size matters not as Yoda says.  In my opinion, Alpine makes the best bunch of IPAs on this Earth.  Duet, Nelson, Pure Hoppiness, Bad Boy, O’Briens and well this beer right here.  Let me have Alpine explain this beer because well, it’s right on.  It’s amazing and it belongs on the top 100 of Beer Advocates best beers in the world.

Very popular. A complex hopping method where each hop addition is double the previous amount. More hops in the hopback and then two dry-hop sessions. The second dry-hop session is with whole hops and oak chips. 1.093 OG 10.75%ABV

It’s a mixture of hoppy goodness with a beautiful smokey flavor.  It’s dangerous.  It’s so easy to drink.  I was just estatic to try this brew.

Rating: A+

Ballast Point Dorado Double IPA -Ballast Point makes a ton of beers but this is there only Double IPA and its a really good one.  A great mixture of floral, citrus, and piney hops.  Easy to drink and crisp.  These guys are just amazing.  The one – two punch of Sculpin and Dorado is one of the best out there.

Rating: A-

Ballast Point Victory at Sea -This is the second brew I tried at the brewery and wow it just blew me away.  Dorado was very good but this was just fantastic.  I wish I would of bought a bigger glass but I was already feeling a little buzzed and I had to drive around San Diego.  A place I really don’t know to well.  The mixture of coffee and vanilla in this porter is just spot on and the mouthfeel is amazing.  Easily my favorite porter.  See this somewhere, you make sure to buy a glass

Rating: A+

Stone Sawyer’s Triple – The reason this beer exists is a sad story.  You can read about it here http://blog.stonebrew.com/?p=149 But there is a happy ending.  100% of the sales of this beer go to fight ALD.  So if you are at the brewery, pick up this beer.  Not only are you helping a good cause but hey this is actually a pretty damn fine beer.  Taste is full of candied sugar, fruit, and honey.  A real treat.

Rating: A-

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Starr Hill Northern Lights – What you see here might be the worst beer I had all summer.  I had it while I was at the Dave Matthews Band concert.  It was a bitter mess.  I would of thrown it away if it didn’t cost me 12 dollars for the plastic cup you see above.  Maybe I’ll have to try this beer again in bottle.  I see it all the time around my area.

Rating: D

Dogfish Head Goser the Gosarian -Yes this is definitely a Ghostbusters reference.  I had this brew at the Rehoboth DFH Brewpub.  It’s a brewpub exclusive and I don’t know if they will ever brew it again so I’m really glad I got to try it.  Hey look it’s even smiling at me! Gozer is classified as a Gose.  Beer Advocate says this about the style:

An old German beer style from Leipzig, Gose is an unfiltered wheat beer made with 50-60% malted wheat, which creates a cloudy yellow color and provides a refreshing crispness and twang. A Gose will have a low hop bitterness and a complementary dryness and spice from the use of ground coriander seeds and a sharpness from the addition of salt. Like Berliner Weisse beers, a Gose will sometimes be laced with various flavored and colored syrups. This is to balance out the addition of lactic acid that is added to the boil.

Somewhat recently, Gose has seen a mini-revival with a handful of breweries bringing back the style in the Leipziger area and pubs like Gosenschenke “Ohne Bedenken” serving traditionally brewed Gose.

The writeup was pretty much right on.  It defintely had a little sour twang to it.  Not much, just right for me.  Mix that in with a decent amount of coriander, wheat, and lemon and you have a nice small tart brew.

Rating: B+

Stone 10th Anniversary and Stone Smoked Porter with Vanilla Beans (sitting right behind the glass of 10th =) – One of my first nights in San Diego the girlfriend and I went out to visit Joey from South Bay Drugs.  We met him at a bar that was holding a Stone night.  Joey also brought in some Stone brews.  I got to try Juxtaposition for the first time but the highlight was trying Stone 10th Anniversary.  I missed the 10th anniversary beer because I really only got into craft beer with the 11th anniversary beer came out.  Stone 10th was classified an American Double/Imperial IPA when it first came out.  But after all the years of aging this beer is tasting more like a Barleywine these days and wow was it just fantastic.  Thanks Joey!  Also I got to try an tap only Stone beer.  Their Smoked Porter with Vanilla Beans.  Wow!!!  Smoked Porter is ok by itself but with the vanilla it’s just out of this world.

Stone 10th Anniversary Rating: A-
Stone Smoked Porter with Vanilla Beans Rating: A

Deschutes Black Butte XXI – I’ve been looking to try this beer for a long long time.  So when I got the chance to trade for one I was all over it.  Black Butte XXI is a stronger version of their regular porter which goes by the name Black Butte.  Who would of thought?  For the bigger version they age a portion of in whiskey barrels.  XXI is definitely the biggest porter I’ve had.  Maybe not in taste but in just how much the beer packs a punch.  You notice it from start to finish.

This brew pours almost black like a lot of stouts out there but if you hold it to the light a tiny bit will shine through.  Small tan head is poured.  Spotty lacing throughout the glass.  The aroma is huge.  Especially for an American Porter.  Nice big mixture of sweet chocolate, roasted malt, coffee, and bourbon.  The bourbon smell really makes this porter different then a lot of porters out there.  It’s just really well done.

This a great mixture of a huge bad ass beer and a dessert beer.  Up front is the rich sweet taste of chocolate.  Next of course is the bourbon.  I believe I read somewhere that only 20% of this beer is actually aged in the barrels but it gives off more then that to me.  Up next is the roasted malt coffee.  The coffee is lacking a little bit from the flavor.  I definitely noticed it more in the smell.  Top that off with a bit of caramel and vanilla.  Also I did notice a bit of an alcohol burn but nothing that gets in the way.   Put that all together and you have a hell of a taste.  While the taste and smell are fantastic, the mouthfeel is no slouch either.  It’s creamy.  Maybe just to creamy.  It just makes you want to down this awesome beer.  If you do that you might just notice that 11% abv.

This beer is part of their reserve series.  What a series that is.  It holds one my favorite stouts of all time, The Abyss.  It also holds a really good barleywine named Mirror Mirror.  I have one getting some age on it and a really good sour brown ale named The Dissident.  Can’t go wrong with any of those beers.

 Found: Beer Trade
Price: Around 11 dollars a bottle
Website: http://www.deschutesbrewery.com
What the company says: This masterpiece is a tribute to Black Butte Porter, the revolutionary Deschutes Brewery beer that has excited beer enthusiasts since 1988. This special Reserve Series release is a colossal version of Black Butte Porter. Our brewers enhanced Black Butte XXI by adding some Theo’s Chocolate cocoa nibs from Seattle, dry-hopping it with 100 pounds of Bellatazza’s locally roasted coffee, and then aging a portion of it in Stranahan’s Colorado whiskey barrels. These regional partners provided quality artisan ingredients that give this commemorative beer a truly handcrafted complexity.
ABV%: 11.00%
Other beers to try from this brewery: Deschutes The Abyss, Deschutes Mirror Mirror
Other beers to try within the same style: Founders Porter, Terrapin Dos Cocoas Chocolate Porter
Rating: A

J.W. Lees Harvest Ale (Calvados Cask) – Here’s a brew I had a while back at a local bar.  I remember loving it and saying damn I’m drunk as shit and this is going to make me worst.  Yeah I can say stupid and obvious stuff sometimes.  I also remember my buddy buying a bottle and asking the waitress if he could get his money back or trade it in for another beer.  I laughed my ass off because well I was pretty damn drunk.   I loved the beer then and I loved it when I opened up a bottle of it last week.  I had this beer in the fridge for what seems forever.  I opened up the fridge and said it is time you fantastic English Barleywine!

This 2007 version poured a hazy caramel color.  If you put the glass up to a light you see a ton of debris.  Floaties everywhere.  Don’t let that scare you away though because this beer is amazing.  Aroma is very sweet.  Almost syrupy.  Apple, oak, toffee, caramel, and butterscotch.  It’s a strong aroma.  Taste is pretty much the same as the smell.  Just a little less.  Not as big as the smell but great nonetheless.  One of the more complex barleywines I’ve ever had.  Out of the taste I think the apple is the star though.  The mouthfeel is thick and syrupy.  Good stuff.  I have a few more brews from these guys just sitting in the fridge.  After having this again I’ll make sure to bust out a few more sooner than later.

Found: Grape and Gourmet, Virginia Beach, VA
Price: Around 8 dollars a bottle
Website: http://www.wordforwine.co.uk/jwlees
What the company says: Site is in flash.  I’m to lazy to write it all out.  Hey least I’m honest.
ABV%: 11.50%
Other beers to try from this brewery: First beer from this brewery
Other beers to try within the same style: Dominion Millenium Ale, Weyerbacher Blithering Idiot
Rating: A-

Mcneill’s Blond Bombshell – Another brew thanks to my buddy Jeff and his trip to Vermont.  I still owe you more beer Jeff.  I didn’t forget.  This time it’s American Blonde Ale from Mcneill’s Brewery.  I’ve had a few beers from these guys and each time I’ve really enjoyed them.  This is the weakest of the bunch but it’s still a decent brew.  Blond Bombshell pours a fluffy good sized head that quickly disappears into the hazy golden color brew.  A nice amount of carbonation throughout.  The smell on this one herbal and spicy with a decent amount of citrus.  The taste up front is good.  Bitter and sour.  Tastes of citrus, spice, and lemon.  The beer kind of falls apart in the end though.  Goes from a nice full flavor to almost nothing.  Still decent but these guys have far better beers.

Found: My buddy Jeff!
Price: No idea on this one.
Website: http://www.myspace.com/mcneillsbrewery
What the company says: These guys use Myspace as their homepage.  Kind of sad really.  Especially since they brew good beer.  You guys deserve better!
ABV%: 5.20%
Other beers to try from this brewery: Mcneill’s Oatmeal Stout, Mcneill’s ESB
Other beers to try within the same style: Tyranena Beaches Honey Blonde
Rating: B-

Harpoon Leviathan Imperial IPA – Thank you Harpoon.  Thanks for putting out a really good East Coast IPA.  You see lately I’ve lost all my faith in East Coast breweries and their IPAs.  Sure there are some great ones but lately I’ve been trying a ton of West Coast IPAs and well what I’ve had surely kicks the hell out of the East Coast.  But Harpoon comes through with a really good IPA and throws it in their Leviathan series.  A series which also holds a really good Baltic Porter.  Keep it up Harpoon!  You’re restoring my faith.  Oh and they made this a year round offering.  Hell ya!

This brew pours a hazy orange color.  Huge, huge head with great retention and lacing.  The smell is packed with fruit.  Orange, grapefruit, and mango.  It’s lovely.  A sweet caramel malt backs everything up nicely.  One of the better smelling IPAs I’ve had in a while.  Same thing with the taste here.  Big flavorful fruits with the malt background.  Nice hop bitterness.  Mouthfeel is medium, creamy, and smooth.  Goes down really nice.  I’m usually not a Harpoon fan but the Leviathan series is pretty good so far.  As for the East Coast IPA thing?  Faith has been restored a little.

Found: Grape and Gourmet, Virginia Beach, VA
Price: 4 dollars a bottle
Website: http://www.harpoonbrewery.com/
What the company says: Harpoon Leviathan Imperial IPA will challenge your senses and your palate. As the vibrant aroma rushes out of your glass you will notice the blend of piney and tropical fruit notes.  At first sip, this big beer starts with apowerful hop bitterness up front and an aggressive hop flavor and character throughout.

Leviathan Imperial IPA is brewed with tons of pale malt and just enough caramel malt to provide a sweet malt body to balance the hop intensity. We used copious amounts of a variety of hops including Chinook, Centennial, Simcoe, and Amarillo at various points during the boil to create a complex hop flavor and clean lingering bitter finish. We then fermented the beer with Harpoon’s own versatile proprietary yeast.   Finally, we dry hopped at a rate of over 1 lb a barrel to produce this beer’s massive aroma.
ABV%: 10.00%
Other beers to try from this brewery: Harpoon Leviathan Baltic Porter, Harpoon Rauchfetzen
Other beers to try within the same style: Two Brothers Hop Juice, Founders Double Trouble
Rating: A

Williamsburg Alewerks Washington’s Porter – So Williamsburg Alewerks is only an hour away from me but for some reason I’ve never stopped by to see the brewery and tasting room.  This all changed a few weeks ago when the girlfriend and I took a week day trip up to the brewery.  While there I got to try their sampler.  By far their best brew in the sampler was their American Porter which is called Washington’s Porter.  So I picked up a growler of this stuff to share at my fantasy football draft that would occur the very next day.  Only me and one of my buddies drank the growler.  We both agreed it was pretty decent.  Actually this ended up being his gateway Porter.  The very next day he picked up a couple of porters from our local Total Wine.  I’m such a bad influence.

Washington Porter pours a huge, creamy tan head.  The head quickly disappears though.  Like a soda fizzing away.  Color is a very very dark brown.  Smell contains some roasted malt, dark chocolate, and coffee.  None of the aromas really pop out.  All just mix together for a decent smell.  The taste has a little bit of a bitter coffee taste.  Mixed in their is the dark chocolate and roasted malt.  There’s a small kick of hops in there.  Mouthfeel is medium bodied with a tad bit of carbonation.  This beer is bordering as a session ale but at 6.35% abv it might be a little bit to much.  I know after the 3 glasses I had a felt a little bit of a buzz going on.  Overall this is a strong offering from a local brewery.  Always happy to support the local guys.  I just wish Surly or Alpine we’re more local.

Found: Straight from the brewery
Price: I believe it was around 12 dollars for the growler
Website: http://williamsburgalewerks.com/
What the company says: Rich and smooth, AleWerks Porter is a traditional example from colonial times. A six malt backbone is balanced with Fuggles hops. Sit back and relax after dinner with a pint...
ABV%: 6.35%
Other beers to try from this brewery: Williamsburg Alewerks Rapadou Porter, Williamsburg Alewerks Chesapeake Pale Ale
Other beers to try within the same style: Founders Porter, Terrapin Dos Cocoas Chocolate Porter
Rating: B

I’m not going to lie.  I’m not a huge porter fan.  I rather by drinking a nice hefty stout.  But I heard really good things about this porter from my buddy Kevin at Grape and Gourmet.  Was he right?  Yeah and he usually always is =)  There’s nothing fancy with porter.  It’s just tasty and easy to drink.

Founders Porter pours deep dark brown.  No way you’re seeing through this glass.  Decent sized beige head that leaves a good bit of lacing as you drink this baby.  The smell is wonderful.  It actually reminds me of a really good stout.  Sweet chocolate and roasted coffee attack your nose.  Wasn’t expecting this much of an aroma.  There’s also a bit of grassy hops hiding in there. 

The taste is fantastic.  You’ll notice the hops just a tad bit more.  Especially when the beer warms up.  In the nose the coffee dominated a little bit more then the chocolate.  But in the taste the chocolate defintely comes in 1st.  Founders describes the mouthfeel as velvety.  They couldn’t be more right.  Very smooth.  Goes down easy.  Before I knew it half my glass was gone.  Medium bodied, sticky, and smooth. 

If I had to point someone to an American Porter this would be my choice.  I’m not an expert on the style but this is definitely the best I’ve had. 

Found: Grape and Gourmet, Virginia Beach, VA
Price: 2-3 dollars a bottle
Website: http://foundersbrewing.com
What the company says: Pours silky black with a creamy tan head. The nose is sweet with strong chocolate and caramel malt presence. No absence of hops gives Founders robust porter the full flavor you deserve and expect. Cozy like velvet. It’s a lover, not a fighter.
ABV%: 6.50%
Other beers to try from this brewery: Founders Devil Dancer, Founders Canadian Breakfast Stout
Other beers to try within the same style: Samuel Adams Holiday Porter
Rating: A-

This past weekend I visited my family down in Georgia.  Visiting other people in different states is always a nice time to go beer hunting!!!  To my surprise every beer store I went to was well stocked with beer I’ve never seen before.  There version of Total Wine just blows away the ones we have here.  Distribution in Georgia is strong.  Maybe I should move there.  Instead of going nuts I decided to only try to pick up brews that were from the state.  (That worked out sorta)  I decided to get my education in a brewery named Terrapin Beer Co.  Terrapin is located in Athens, Georgia.  Which I don’t think is to far from where I was staying.  They have a line of beers called “Side Project”  These beers are only brewed once and once they are gone, they are gone forever.  I was lucky enough to find two of those brews (well actually three but I didn’t have time to drink it while I was down there) Dos Cocoas and Monk’s Revenge.  I also decided I needed to try their year around beers.  They make a four in total.  I won’t go into huge reviews for those four because well by the time I was done with drinking most of the box, I was pretty lit.  But instead here are some quick ones.

Rye Pale Ale – My second favorite of the bunch.  A decent pale ale with a punch of hops, bready malt, and of course the rye.  I love beers brewed with rye so this was good to me.  Easy to drink.  Light and crisp.  Good for the 90+ degree weather.  Rating: B

Golden Ale – Probably my least favorite of the bunch but still a really decent beer.  A nice light beer brewed with honey.  Light floral hops with a grainy taste rounded out the experience.  A great session beer.  You can down these babies all night.  Rating: C

India Style Brown Ale – Easily my favorite out of the four.  Nice mixture of brown ale and IPA characteristics.  Nice roasted malt flavor, chocolate, with a nice shot of hops.  Interesting mixture here and like I said the highlight of the 4. Rating: B+

SunRay Wheat Beer – Last but not least is their take on a Hefeweizen.  Was not to overly impressed with this Hefe but like everything else in the box it was a easy drinker and decent.  Mixture of wheat and tart fruit.  Rating: C+

Ok now on to the beers I was really searching for.  The Side Project beers.  The two I found like I said above was Monk’s Revenge which is classified as a Belgian IPA and Dos Cocoas which is a Chocolate Porter.  While I really enjoyed one, the other one really didn’t do much for me.  Read on!!

Terrapin Dos Cocoas Chocolate Porter – First is the porter.  This beer is number 4 in the series of 6  This brew poured like a soda.  At first it poured a huge head.  But quickly the head fizzles out like a soda does.  Bubbles shooting everywhere. The color of the brew is pitch black.   The smell is full of bitter chocolate. roasted malt, and a small amount of coffee.  The smell was decent but nothing to write home about.  Sadly same goes for the taste.  I was hoping for more of a rich taste.  But instead the bitterness of the chocolate takes over to much.  I know this is a chocolate porter but it was to much bitter chocolate for my tastes.  Wanted a little bit more complex taste.  Mixed in with the bitterness was a bit of sourness.  The mixture just turned me off from this beer.  What else bugged me is how watery this beer was.  One of the more watery beers I’ve had in a while.  While this was a nice beer to make I’m glad they are only doing it once and not making it a full release.  Maybe a little tinkering with the recipe would make this one a winner.  But you know you really aren’t into a beer when you don’t want to even finish it.  Luckily the other Side Project beer made up for it.

Found: Somewhere in Georgia!
Price: 7 dollars a bottle
Website: http://www.terrapinbeer.com
What the company says: The “Dos Cocoas” is a traditional Porter with a chocolaty experimental twist. “Spike” incorporated two types of chocolate at two different stages of production to achieve the balanced chocolate flavors in the “Dos Cocoas.” The first addition was 60 pounds of cocoa powder added in the whirlpool. Next, the porter was aged for one month on a 60 pound bed of cocoa nibs to really bring the dark chocolate flavors home. The result is a fine chocolate aroma, a unique bitterness and a tantalizingly balanced chocolate flavor from both the cocoa powder and the nibs.
ABV%: 5.80%
Other beers to try from this brewery: Terrapin India Style Brown Ale, Terrapin Rye Pale Ale
Other beers to try within the same style: Samuel Adams Holiday Porter
Rating: C

Terrapin Monk’s Revenge – Up next is their take on a Belgian IPA.  Ever since I’ve tried my first Belgian IPA (Stone Cali-Belgique IPA) I’ve really enjoyed the style of beer.  I mean how can you go wrong.  A mixture of Belgian style brewing with my favorite kind of beer, India Pale Ale.  A mixture made in heaven.  This might not be my favorite version of the style but it’s pretty damn good.  It’s big.  That’s for sure.  The beer pours a light orange color with a fluffy white head that leaves a good amount of lacing throughout the glass.  The smell is just inviting.  Mixture of piney hops, citrus, sugary sweet aroma, Belgian yeast and spice.  Good mixture.  When you take your first sip you’ll be welcomed by a nice fruity, sweet sugary flavor mixed in with hops and the Belgian side of things, the yeast and spice.  You’ll also notice a nice amount of alcohol.  Burns your mouth and throat a bit as it goes down.  The beer is smooth and crisp.  Just a lovely beer.  I even had my brother try it, he’s a Coors Light man, and he liked it.  Could I be converting someone else to the darkside?  No probably not.  Out of the two Side Project beers this is easily the winner.  To bad I missed the others.

Found: Somewhere in Georgia!
Price: 7 dollars a bottle
Website: http://www.terrapinbeer.com
What the company says: This Belgian IPA has a malt bill of a Belgian Tripel and a hop bill of a Double IPA. The yeast I chose for this beer comes from one of the 7 Trappist breweries. Believe it or not, this is the first time in my professional brewing career that I have used dextrose (corn syrup) in a Terrapin brew. True to style no doubt. “Monk’s Revenge” (otherwise known as the “Big Nasty”) has all the flavor and aroma of a Double IPA while hidden beneath lies the malt character of a fine Belgian Tripel. I hope you enjoy my interpretation of this very fun style.
ABV%: 9.80%
Other beers to try from this brewery: Terrapin Golden Ale, Terrapin SunRay Wheat Beer
Other beers to try within the same style: Green Flash Le Freak, Stone Cali-Belgique IPA)
Rating: B+ (Almost an A-)

What would a weekend by without trying a few beers?  This weekend I tried 4 different beers.  3 I have listed and well the other one gets it’s own special review which is coming up soon.  I won’t get into any details but I owe this person a review.  It’s been a long time coming. 

On Thursday night (yes I count Thursday as the beginning of the weekend!) I pulled out some Oak Aged Yeti.  I really did like the original version.  It’s a different take on a Imperial Stout in my opinion.  A lot of stouts have a good amount of hops but the original Yeti had more than the usual.  This time around though the hops are a tad bit more laid back.  It’s probably the barreling process that calmed down the hops.  Don’t get me wrong it still has a great taste and I might of liked it more than the original.

Oak Aged Yeti pours out like engine oil.  Not completely black but pretty darn close.  As you can see in the picture it has a huge caramel head that would probably stick around for hours if I didn’t dive right into the beer.  Smell is a little bit more subdued than the original.  Chocolate, coffee, and a little bit of sweetness from the vanilla.  The taste on this one is just fantastic.  Everything mixes well together.  Cocoa, chocolate, vanilla, and the hops come together to form an enjoyable brew.  The oaky flavor is there also and just sits nicely with everything else.  The feel on this one is certainly a treat.  Smooth as silk.  Goes down very easy.  Not to heavy, not to light. To me this is more enjoyable than it’s brother and is probably harder to find.  I can see this beer aging nicely.  So pick up two!

Found:State Line Liquor, Elkton, Maryland
Price: 9 dollars a bottle
Website: http://www.greatdivide.com/
What the company says :Crack open Yeti Imperial Stout’s sophisticated sibling – Oak Aged Yeti Imperial Stout. Although these beers come from the same clan, they have entirely different personalities. Aging on a blend of French and toasted oak chips infuses a subtle oak and vanilla character into Yeti’s already intense chocolate, roasted coffee malt flavor and hugely assertive hop profile. Who says you can’t tame a Yeti
ABV%: 9.5%
Other beers to try from this brewery: Great Divide Old Ruffian, Great Divide Hercules Double IPA
Other beers to try within the same style: Oscar Blues Ten Fidy, Stone Russian Imperial Stout, North Coast Old Rasputin
Rating: A-

So far all the beers I’ve had from Sierra Nevada have been decent.  Especially their Celebration Ale and since Sierra Nevada is one of the breweries out their that we must all thank for starting the craft brewing revolution, I feel it is my duty to try all their stuff. Without companies like them, we would all be drinking Budweiser right now.  God that’s a horrible thought.  Sadly though this beer really did nothing for me.  I really couldn’t taste much at all and kept on wondering what I was missing.  Maybe I got a dud or maybe I waited to long to drink this beer.  I’ll have to wait until next year to find out.

As you can see in the picture this one poured a cloudy deep amber color with a medium sized fluffy head.  The smell was unimpressive.  All I really got was a small bit of a sweet malt aroma.  Nothing more.  Where are the hops?  Wheres basically everything else?  The same goes with the taste here.  Sweet malty taste.  No hops.  Nothing else.  I’ll say this, it’s well easy to drink =) Light and watery.  Goes down easy.  Next year I’ll make sure to drink this one the same night I get it.  Hopefully it was a dud.  This one gets a awesome rating on BA: A- It must of been a bad bottle.

Found: Grape and Gourmet, Virginia Beach, VA
Price: 4 dollars a bottle
Website: http://www.sierranevada.com/
What the company says: Created in 1996, Harvest Ale features Cascade and Centennial hops from the Yakima Valley in Eastern Washington. These hops are harvested and shipped as “wet” un-dried hops—the same day they are picked—to our brewery in Chico where our brewers eagerly wait to get them into the brew kettle while their oils and resins are still at their peak.you can’t tame a Yeti?
ABV%: 6.70%
Other beers to try from this brewery: Sierra Nevada Celebration Ale, Sierra Nevada ESB
Other beers to try within the same style:Russian River Bling Pig, Sierra Nevada Anniversary Ale
Rating: D

I’m not going to lie.  Yes this is the holiday season but this beer is actually been sticking around in the fridge since last Christmas.  But I’m happy to say it still tastes the same.  I love big porters.  This is not a big porter.  But this is a good gateway porter for first time porter drinkers.  It’s decent and easy to drink and I could see myself sitting by a fire roasting chestnuts and drinking a few of these. =)

This pours a dark brown with a medium sized fluffy head.  A ton of lacing as you drink this one.  The smell is full of sweetness.  Like a sweet coffee.  Dark roasted aromas follow and end with chocolate.  A tad bit of alcohol and hops.  As for the taste the sweetness is fully up front.  Chocolate and roasted aroma like burnt bread follows.  But like I said everything is pretty small in this beer and you can easily have a few.  Medium mouthfeel with going more towards a lighter mouthfeel.  Smooth. 

So if you want to try a porter or are just feel like having an easy to drink porter, this is not a bad one to try first.  But if you know a lot about porters or like big ones this might be one to stay away from.  You can only find this (I believe) in the holiday mix pack. 

Found: In a grocery store part of a Sam Adams holiday pack 
Price: $12 dollars for a case of assorted Sam Adams goodies.
Website: http://www.samueladams.com/
What the company says: Introduced as a member of the Winter Classics Mix Pack in 2004, Samuel Adams® Holiday Porter with its rich malt complexity has become a favorite among our winter seasonal brews. In total, five varieties of malted barley are used in the brewing process including a variety of German malt called Carafa®. The Carafa® gives our Holiday Porter its smooth, roasted malt character. Add generous portions of imported hops to the mix and one has a brew that is both robust and high in drinkability.
Carafa® is a registered trademark of Weyermann Malt, Bamburg, Germany.
ABV%: 5.90%
Other beers to try from this brewery: Sam Adams Winter Lager, Sam Adams Cream Stout
Other beers to try within the same style: I honestly have not had enough of this type of beer to give more from the same style
Rating: B-

Found: My girlfriend while taking a trip to Tennessee. Straight from the brewery.
Price: N/A
Website: http://smoky-mtn-brewery.com
What the company says: You can check out the description of this brew at http://smoky-mtn-brewery.com

What I say: What we have up next is probably my new favorite from this brewery.  It’s their take on an American Porter.

The Look: Very dark brown with a medium sized head.  So far from all the brews I’ve tried from this place this one probably poured the biggest.

What the nose thought: A great mixture of Roasted Malt, Chocolate, Vanilla, and Caramel and for the first time you get a bit of an alcohol smell from one their beers.  It’s not huge at all but it’s there. 

And the tastebuds?: Like I said above this is my favorite beer from them at this moment and what surprised me is something I didn’t smell, hops.  The taste of this beer provides everything up above but you also get a nice little kick of hops.  Surprised me.  A pleasant surprise at that. 

The feel: Medium bodied with a good bit of carbonation.  Easy drinking just like all of their other stuff.

Ending notes: It’s their best in their line which is a line that is a really decent and safe line of beers. 

Rating: B-