By the Pint's Top Ten Beers

I've been looking forward to this beer ever since it was announced that Dogfish Head and Sierra Nevada would be collaborating. I really like the Dogfish Head beers I've had, but I haven't been real crazy about Sierra Nevada's brews. I was anxious to see how Dogfish Head's extreme beer styles would jive with Sierra Nevada's tendencies to just throw a bunch of hops into a bottle and call it beer. Ok, that's a bit harsh... but that's what my experience with Sierra Nevada has been. I finally got the chance to have a glass of Life & Limb on tap and was quite pleasantly surprised.

I'm nearing the end of my Brouwerij Van Steenberge sampler pack I picked up about six months ago. These stubby little bottles have been consistently good, with a couple being phenomenal. Piraat is one of the beers that blew me away. It's been a tortured wait for this beer. Knowing that I had a bottle of this floating around the fridge at home meant I didn't want to order one while I was out and saw it on the menu. Well, now that I've killed the bottle at home I'll definitely be ordering this every chance I get.

Stouts can be hit or miss for me. Like most people, my first Stout was a Guinness. I thought it was too dry, too bitter, too... dark. I've grown to appreciate not just Guinness but more complex Stouts. There are still some that I find too dry or bitter, but when I find a Stout that has the perfect balance of flavors, it's like there's nothing better. When I first had New Holland's Dragon's Milk, it was a bit like that. I remember this beer having some really strong Stout flavors, but getting them balanced so well that nothing was overpowering or too harsh on your palate.

I try not to seek out breweries or specific beers. I know that, in most cases, it will just lead to frustration when I can't find a beer I really want to try. Even worse is when I finally get my hands on a bottle of something I've really been looking forward to and it just doesn't live up to expectations. The Bruery is one brewery I've been wanting to try for the longest time and have been trying to find bottles of their beer while on vacation for a while now. It seems like their beers just don't stay in stock very long, which is great because their beers must be really good... but it doesn't help when I'm out of town and looking for a bottle to bring back home. I was finally able to pick up a few bottles of Bruery beer a few weeks ago and I'm hoping they can now live up to the hype that has been built up in my head.