New York

I haven't had many of Schmatlz's beers. I remember liking the Messiah Bold even if it wasn't spectacular, so I was excited to try this Coney Island Sword Swallower. The name isn't very descriptive so I wasn't real sure what to expect from this beer. In the smaller print it says this is a "Steel Hop Lager" which still isn't a great description. Looking a little harder I notice the line "Dry Hopped IPA" ...great. Maybe it won't taste like a mouthful of hops... the label also plays up the malts used in this beer so it's probably more balanced than you'd thing.

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.

This is the first He'Brew beer I've had. It's not like I've been avoiding these beers for any reason, I just wasn't able to find single bottles before and I tend to be wary of six packs of beer I haven't had before. I finally found a bottle of He'Brew's Messiah Bold today so I quickly picked it up and ran home to pour it in a pint glass. The first thing I noticed about this beer is that it's dark... really dark. I only mention this because the Messiah Bold is a Brown Ale not a Porter or Stout, but you'd never know from looking at it.

Nutmeg. Oak. Cinnamon. Caramel. There's a whole lot of Christmas in this beer. Dundee's Festive Ale is... just that, festive. This beer pours a deep copper color and develops a thin tan head. The dominant aroma in the glass is caramel but there are hints of cinnamon. When you take a sip of this beer you'll notice that it's flavor profile follows the aroma very closely. When Dundee's Festive Ale hits your palate you'll notice the sweet caramel and butterscotch maltiness right away. A counterbalance to all that sweetness is a cinnamon bite that takes your attention off the sweet malts before this beer finishes with a hint of oak.

Saranac and I don't have the best history... I've had a couple Saranac beers and they didn't come anywhere near my expectations. I don't think I have outlandish expectations or anything, I just think their beers were... well, bad. That hasn't stopped me from picking up another Saranac beer though. This time around I've got their Season's Best, a Nut Brown Lager with a picture of a lone snowbound log cabin in the foothills of the Appalachians. It's a nice setting, but if I were holed up in that cabin with nothing but sixers of Saranac, it probably wouldn't be long before I started reenacting scenes from The Shining...

If there weren't a big Jack-o-Lantern on the label of this beer you probably wouldn't be able to tell it was Pumpkin Ale. Saranac's "Pumpkin" Ale doesn't have that spiced oomph that other Pumpkin Ales pack. There isn't any gingerbread spice or nutmeg in this beer either, it's odd... but I kinda like it. To be clear, as a Pumpkin Ale this beer fails completely. There are really very few similarities between this beer and pretty much every other Pumpkin Beer I've had. As an autumn seasonal beer, this Saranac is pretty good. It has an earthy, nutty flavor that feels warm and is really quite nice.

Dundee's Oktoberfest has a lot going for it. Just like books and their covers, you shouldn't judge a beer by it's label but sometimes it's hard not to get attached to a great label. This beer, case in point, has a great label and you can't help but think, "I wanna drink this!" You see, this Dundee's label shows a scarecrow who's being picked apart by a crow while eying the frothy beer mug in his left hand. It's a little kitschy but it's fun and fits into the whole Oktoberfest theme. Speaking of which, this is an Oktoberfest Märzen style beer. Märzens are those copper colored lagers that taste like liquid whole grain bread and make you wanna jump in a pile of dry leaves. Dundee's Oktoberfest is a solid Märzen. This beer is copper in color, creamy in texture and roasted in flavor. What more could you ask for?