American

I've been putting off drinking this bottle of Friar's Belgian-Style White Ale from Sherwood Forest Brewers because it all seems a bit... fake. I can't fault these guys for the obvious, making a Belgian Wit outside of Belgium, that's not my quarrel. What turned me off to this beer was all the Robin Hood references. They're kitschy in an annoying sort of way. Unless you're selling this beer to six year olds who think Robin Hood and Friar Tuck are cool, don't hide your beer behind public domain cartoon characters. It feels like you're talking down to me, "I know you like Robin Hood so maybe you'll like our beer because it has a cartoony Friar Tuck on it!" Seriously, let the beer speak for itself...

It's Imperial Stout season but Boulevard seems to be running a little behind this year... In lieu of another release of their Limited Release Imperial Stout, Boulevard has bottled a modified version this year and called it the Dark Truth. A very ominous name on it's own, but if you turn the bottle around and actually read the flavor text on the back you might think Boulevard is trying to sell this beer to guys who are waaaay in to Dio and like to volunteer at the local Renaissance Fair. "He who imbibes the Dark Truth shall find himself filled with the strength of mad bear!" Ok, it's not actually that bad... but there are references to alchemy and "hidden knowledge."

It's not very often that you run across a beer like Boulevard's Rye-on-Rye and that makes it a little to set expectations. I expect this beer to be different, to push the boundaries a little and bring something to the table that other Rye beers, or other barrel aged beers, don't. I started to worry a bit when I saw the label for the Rye-on-Rye, it says that this bottle contains 33% ale and 67% ale aged in rye whiskey barrels. That's a 2:1 ratio in favor of barrel aged beer, meaning this beer is going to taste a lot like a whiskey barrel. That sounds a bit dangerous...

Rye beers are more popular than ever. It seems like most breweries use malted rye in at least one of their beers. I tend to glance over most ryes I see on the beer list because a good deal of them are Rye IPAs, not the kind of beer I'd choose to showcase my rye malt. This bottle from Left Hand is a Rye Bock, a Bavarian style Bock that's been brewed with malted rye instead of barley. There's nothing off the wall about this beer but it still stands out in a crowd. What makes Left Hand's Rye Bock remarkable is it's quality and flavor.

This bottle of Sweetwater Georgia Brown arrived in the mail yesterday with a few other beers. As I was picking out a beer to drink tonight I realized that I've got mostly Belgian style beers chilling in the fridge. I chose to drink the Georgia Brown simply because it wasn't a Belgian beer. I don't have anything against Brown Ales at all, I tend to enjoy them quite a bit. I might have otherwise overlooked this beer because it just doesn't stand out of crowd. The label is a little hokey, with a cartoon trout being reeled in by a couple of inbred Georgian hillbillies.

I first had Boulevard's Imperial Pilsner at the beer's release party in Lawrence, Kansas. In case you hadn't heard, this Imperial Pilsner is a collaboration between Boulevard Brewing Company and Orval's master brewer Jean-Marie Rock. Steven Pauwels, Boulevard's brew master, and Rock met at a conference in Tucson last year. It was there that these two Belgians hit it off and agreed to collaborate and resurrect a beer Rock had brewed some 30 years before. The style that beer most closely resembled is what we now call an American Double or Imperial Pilsner.

What do you mean Redhook isn't a Colorado craft brewery? Oh, after staring real close at there logo I see those are Pine trees, not Rocky Mountains.... honest mistake. I've seen plenty of Redhook beers floating around but this is the first bottle I've decided to pick up and take home. Tripels are one of my favorite styles of beer so this probably wasn't the best beer to start with since my expectations were pretty high. I'd heard good things about this beer and figured it would hold up well under scrutiny, so here we are...

I was especially proud of finding this bottle of at the liquor store, not because it was particularly rare but because it was on the clearance rank. I'd seen a few bottle of these on the shelves over the holidays but didn't get around to picking one up. Even though the holidays are a month behind us I couldn't pass up getting a bottle of this collaboration for half price. The timing worked out well because just enough time had passed that I was no longer burnt out on holiday seasonal beers. After picking up this bottle I realized something a little strange...

I haven't had much luck finding a Saranac beer that I like... They all sound pretty good as first, look appetizing and smell like they've done everything write. It's only when I take a drink that it all goes south. I went into Saranac's India Pale Ale with fairly low expectations... Being an IPA from Saranac doesn't exactly strike me as a beer I'd be likely to enjoy. I tried to keep an open mind however, pouring this beer into tall glass to develop a nice head and bring out the aroma. What I found in this glass of Saranac was pretty intriguing.

Tallgrass' Buffalo Sweat is marketed as a Cream Stout but I had a hard time finding much sweet cream or milk flavor in this beer. That doesn't mean this is a bad beer, but it might not scratch the Milk Stout itch you've got. If you're judging this as a standard Stout you'll have a much richer experience. After pouring this beer into my pint glass I quickly noticed all the roasted malt and coffee aroma. The flavor was almost exactly the same as the aroma, you'll notice a lot of coffee flavored roasted malt and just a hint of sweetness.