Day 83: Saigon Export

Name: Saigon Export

Brewer: Saigon Beer Company (Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam)

Classification: American Adjunct Lager

Alcohol: 4.7%

Thoughts: I have three things to say about this beer:

1. It tastes like the Tet Offensive. Take that however you want to.

2. Clearly the only thing we managed to do during the Vietnam War was leave behind our shittiest style of beer for them to make even shittier. 

3. I wouldn't drink this again if I was on a boat headed up river in Vietnam with Martin Sheen looking for a murderous Marlon Brando and the only way I would escape without yellow fever, losing my limbs, or dying was to drink this God-Forsaken ass-sucking beer!

Rating: 49/100

Day 82: Ommegang Hennepin

Name: Ommegang Hennepin

Brewery: Brewery Ommegang  (Cooperstown, NY)

Classification: Saison

Alcohol: 7.7%

Thoughts: Brewery Ommegang is an American brewery that specializes in Belgium-style beers. So obviously they are going to have their Dubbel, Tripel, Quads, Belgian Pale Ale, Belgian Strong Ale, and Sasions among the many other styles of beer Belgium is known for. This offering is their Saison, Hennepin. The picture (with the sweet Thumbs-Up) doesn't do it justice, but the color on this beer is a vibrant golden-orange with a thin ghost-white head. The smell was peppery, oily, underwhlemingly citrusy and overwhelmingly earthy for a Saison. It reminded me of spicy salami with pepper jelly. The taste was heavier on the citrus with hints of orange and lemon peel combined with notes of phenol and clove. The spice was good, but Saisons should be spicy and a bit out there in order to be truly good. This was a good Ommegang experience, but I hope for more in my next adventure with them. 

Rating: 84/100

Day 81: Sweetwater 420

Name: Sweetwater 420

Brewer: Sweetwater Brewing Company (Atlanta, GA)

Classification: American Pale Ale

Alcohol: 5.4%

Thoughts: Sweetwater is an example of what happens when a craft brewer makes it big. In order to keep up with their demand they have to compromise their recipe to make it feasible to stay financially afloat in that big of a beer market. Their once great and amazing Extra Pale Ale is no longer great. It is clear that shortcuts have been taken and the standards of great brewing have been sacrificed. However, I am going to rate this beer purely on my experience and not the name on the front of the bottle. This APA pours a dark brass colored gold with a bright, white, highly carbonated head. The smell was slightly herbal, but with the sweet malts you expect from APAs. The taste is clearly crisp and refreshing, but not complex or anything I want to over indulge in. There are bits and pieces of citrus, biscuity malts and dryness involved in the taste. This use to be one of the best Pale Ales you could get. Even though this one was not very fresh they are still good when they are. So, what I am saying is that you can still make good beer and be a big brewer but if you want to be great keep it craft. 

Rating: 78/100

Day 80: Stone Pale Ale

Name: Stone Pale Ale

Brewer: Stone Brewing Co. (Escondido, CA)

Classification: American Pale Ale

Alcohol: 5.4%

Thoughts: Do not mess with Stone Brewing! They have freaking gargoyles on their bottles. I don't know if gargoyles are as creepy to anybody else but anything that is meant to scare evil spirits away has to be a bit scary. But then again I guess this is a beer gargoyle that scares away the evil Budweiser spirits. And with their Pale Ale, it has done the job because there are no evil beer spirits around these parts. This not-so-Pale Ale pours a faint coppery orange color with a luxurious tan head. The nose on this brew had notes of wood, an obvious odor of caramel and a whiff of ripe citrus. With a Pale Ale you expect a certain amount of bitterness and sweetness. Stone Pale Ale had less bitterness and more sweetness then I thought it would. It seemed to transition from taste to taste in your mouth on your tongue and down your throat. It has a very clean finish that reminded me of crusty Italian bread. I really liked this beer, but I know for a fact that Stone has some more tricks up their sleeve and I can't wait to see them.

Rating: 86/100

Day 79: Sneaky Pete IPA

Name: Sneaky Pete IPA

Brewer: Laughing Dog Brewery (Ponderay, ID)

Classification: Imperial IPA

Alcohol: 10%

Thoughts: If you take an IPA and inject it with steroids from the Barry Bonds Collection you end up with a monstrous Double IPA that some call an Imperial IPA. I have had a few on The Beer Year before, but I will have a lot more because a larger number of the most celebrated brews in the world are Imperial IPAs. But not Sneaky Pete! Even though this poured a glorious maroon shade with a beige head, which made it look like a great beer, there was something missing from the aroma and taste. Speaking of the aroma it did have a nice touch of melon smell to it but that was all I could get as I was totally confused by the absence of hops. An Imperial IPA should have so many hops your nose should bleed. The taste was extremely bitter and overly hoppy if you could get past the overbearing amount of alcohol in the taste to get those other notes. This was an unrestrained brew, which is not usually a bad thing, but in this case it is.

Rating: 79/100

Day 78: Harvest Ale 2011

Name: Harvest Ale 2011

Brewer: Bull City Burgers & Brewery (Durham, NC)

Classification: Belgian Pale Ale, Maybe?

Alcohol: 9%

Thoughts: The Wife and I decided to try out Bull City Burgers & Brewery. This is another Durham restaurant/brewery that has the right idea about how to cook/brew. They literally make everything in house, except the ketchup, that's Heinz. The burgers, the beer, the buns, even the mayo is made in house and usually with local ingredients. They use the best ingredients they can find and they don't compromise. This of course includes the beer. With this Harvest Ale they had to pre-order fresh, wet hops from Oregon and when they were harvested in July the hops were overnighted to Durham and immediately put to use. They started brewing Harvest Ale 2011 in the middle of the night as soon as the hops arrived. All that dedication to brewing paid off, because Harvest Ale is literally a One-Of-A-Kind! It pours a luscious dark auburn with a creamy, lightly tan head. The aroma was really opened up by the tulip snifter glass it was served in. The freshness of the hops shone through like watching the Sun from Mercury. The taste is what I would call an out of body experience. The top notes of hops were soft and excellently bitter with under notes of sweet caramel, white pepper and candied oranges. This beer is smoother then George Clooney at a Victoria's Secret Model Convention. After my first sip I turned to the Wife and before I could get any words out she said, "That must have been good." It must have been the look of pure excitement on my face. But there is some bad news in all of this. Bull City is going to only brew a Harvest Ale once a year and it will change up each time. So, if you want to try this majestically crafted beauty of a brew, you have to go there now before they run out and it is gone forever.  So, buy your train tickets, your plane tickets or strap on your jet packs and get your ass to Durham, NOW!

Rating: 91/100

Day 77: Chatoe Rogue Single Malt Ale

Name: Chatoe Rogue Single Malt Ale

Brewer: Rogue Ales (Newport, OR)

Classification: American Blonde Ale

Alcohol: ?

Thoughts: Rogue is just an amazing brewery. They really are. They go above and beyond in every way to brew the best beers they can. Some ideas work out and others fail, but if you don't fail trying to brew the best beers possible than you can't truly appreciate the beers you get right. Well the idea of "Grow Your Own" is another insane idea that has provided great results for Rogue. They are brewing beers with Malts and Hops that they grow on their own. They breed the plants and grow them themselves. What?!?! That is really rare. Usually you get your hops and malts from independently owned farms. Well with this Single Malt ale, meaning it was brewed with only one malt (kind of obvious), they brewed an American Blonde Ale. They produced this densely golden yellow brew with a loud white head. The jumpy aroma hits on strong notes of pine and citrus. The unique taste had bits of spice, citrus and yeast, but was glued together by the ever-present malty flavor. This was a very original beer, and more importantly exciting. It could have been a little more focused, but for something with one malt, one hop, some yeast and some water, I don't know how it could be. Keep 'em coming Rogue!

Rating: 85/100

Day 76: Copperline Amber Ale

Name: Copperline Amber Ale

Brewer: Carolina Brewery (Pittsboro/Chapel Hill, NC)

Classification: Amber Ale

Alcohol: 3.9%

Thoughts: This was the second offering from Carolina Brewery that I had at Cat's Cradle. And while you may say, "But Kyle, you had these on the same night how can you possible review them for separate days?" I will respond, "It's called magic! Now get off my back about it!" This is not my picture of Copperline Amber Ale above, it is from Google, but rest assured it is what Copperline Amber Ale looks like. It has that caramelized reddish amber color that you get with 99.9% of all Amber Ales. The smell was fervently fermented with a nice level of alcohol mixed in with the toffee and grapefruit notes. The taste has an upfront sweetness about it like meeting a beauty pageant contestant, but the backside of this beer had a little bitchy (spicy, hoppy) edge to it. This was a little different than most of the Amber Ales I have reviewed recently. This is a good beer, and one I would drink again. It allowed the correct amount of hip movement, foot tapping and off-key singing I needed to enjoy the concert.

Rating: 81/100

Day 75: Sky Blue Golden Ale

Name: Sky Blue Golden Ale

Brewer: Carolina Brewery (Pittsboro/Chapel Hill, NC)

Classification: Kolsch

Alcohol: 5.1%

Thoughts: I went to go see one of my favorite bands, Wild Beasts, at my favorite venue, Cat's Cradle, in Chapel Hill. I knew going to the concert that Cat's Cradle serves Carolina Brewery beers on tap and I would get to try some of them. Unfortunately I did not take a picture of the beer so you will have to just trust me. Of the four the had on tap I tried three. The first one I tried was their Kolsch, Sky Blue (North Carolina may have more breweries making Kolsch than the rest of the US put together). It poured a translucent yellow gold with the basic soft, white head. The aroma consisted of a tangy twist from the yeast with hints of lemon and maybe banana. It was a good smell, but it was better than the taste. The malts tasted pale and slightly bland. The hops mild, but could have been stronger, and the fruitiness I expect in a Kolsch was non-existent. This brew was decent, but I moved on to other, better Carolina Brewery brews in hopes that I would fine one more suitable to my dancing maneuvers. 

Rating: 75/100

Day 74: Big A IPA

Name: Big A IPA

Brewer: Smuttynose Brewing Co. (Portsmouth, NH)

Classification: Imperial IPA

Alcohol: 9.7%

Thoughts: I knew this was going to happen at some point. I knew that it would be a problem eventually. I don't feel like writing my blog tonight. My hope was that this would happen on a night when the beer I had was crappy and I could crack a joke about how bad it tastes. But it happened on a night when the beer was really freakin' good. Big A IPA is Smuttynose's Oak Aged Imperial IPA, which means there is so much flavor and complexity to this thing that I would have to write a novel to get it all in. So instead I am simply going to say this, "It is a superbly crafted drink that should be tried by all beer lovers. Try it and let me know what you think of it." 

Rating: 86/100

Day 73: Stoudt's Gold Lager

Name: Stoudt's Gold Lager

Brewer: Stoudt's Brewing Co. (Adamstown, PA)

Classification: Munich Helles Lager

Alcohol: 4.7%

Thoughts: Let's be frank here. I know everything! I mean it, everything. So when it comes to beers, or movies, or music, awards mean shit to me because the real award is having my blessing. So when I see a beer that has won tons of medals and blue ribbons (PBR) I usually don't believe it until I try it and sanction these awards as legitimate in my eyes. Well, Stoudt's Gold Lager has won just about everything including Little Miss Arkansas three years running! And I'm here to knock it down a peg or two. Into the glass I poured this pale golden nectar of the Beer Gods. There was little to no head, but the aroma was like being in a French Bakery. The smell of fresh, yeasty bread tickled my fancy like Charlie Sheen in an opium den. The taste fixed itself to my palate and I enjoyed the sugary-sweet, hoppy forefront supplemented by the bubbly full-flavored backend. This beer was outrageously well crafted. Doc Brown would have been proud of this invention. Blue Ribbons, Gold Medals, Oscars, Blessings and Trophy Wives all around for Stoudt's Gold Lager!

Rating: 88/100

Day 72: Gateway Kölsch

Name: Gateway Kölsch

Brewer: French Broad Brewing Co. (Asheville, NC)

Classification: Kölsch

Alcohol: 5.3%

Thoughts: I went to Village Draft House in Raleigh for lunch and they are similar to Tyler's in that they too have a massive amount of beers on draft. French Broad Brewery is one that I have heard many good things about, but have never had the chance to get my hands on one. The Draft House had a rotating handle of French Broad and said, "Bring It On" and then Kirsten Dunst and Eliza Dushku jumped out in cheerleading uniforms and we Cheer-Battled our rivals from Inner-City LA. It's true! After that was over and we crushed their spirit-fingers and I decided to drink my beer. This was French Broad's Kölsch, Gateway. As you can see above this beer poured a muted, crystal clear gold with a disapated head. There was a pungent grape aroma with a little bit of tartness on the nose. It was subtle, it was simple, but it was sensual. After the first sip the characteristic that stands out is the clarity and freshness of the taste. Again, we get white grapes and a sweet tartness, but it is so soft on the palate it makes this beer feel airy. Like drinking clouds. This beer is an "everyman" beer because whether you like dark beers, ciders, or anything in between, Gateway will be drinkable and likable for you. After Kirsten and Eliza finished their beers we went on to finish second at Nationals to our Inner-City rival. It's a damn shame!

Rating: 82/100

Day 71: Maredsous 8

Name: Maredsous 8

Brewer: Brouwerij Duvel Moortgat NV (Breendonk-Puurs, Belgium)

Classification: Dubbel

Alcohol: 8%

Thoughts: Duvel is one of the most legendary name in Beer, period. They rank among the great breweries like Heineken, Hofbrau, and Stella Artois. This are beers you find world-wide and are high quality. Duvel is similar except they make beers of the highest quality. This Maredsous 8 is from one of their less known collections. I have never seen it in the US, and I jumped at the opportunity to try it. This Dubbel poured a deep burgundy with reddish tints. It looks exactly like Coca-Cola. The aroma is teeming with dried plums, cherries and a whiff of vinegar. The taste involves more dark fruits like grapes in conjunction with the plums and cherries I mentioned in the smell. Their is a flourish a bitterness on the back end but the feel of the finish is clean. This beer really reminds me of the Petrus Oud Bruin I had a month ago or so. However, this was smoother, the taste was more balanced, and more relentless. The complexity of this beer is to be enjoyed through sips as you gallivant through layer upon layer of savory flavor. 

Rating: 87/100

Day 70: Rocket Science IPA

Name: Rocket Science IPA

Brewer: Fullsteam Brewery (Durham, NC)

Classification: American IPA

Alcohol: 6.5%

Thoughts: Despite the fact that the beer in the picture above looks like Yuengling and is in a Yuengling glass it is in fact Fullsteam's Rocket Science IPA. Fullsteam, my favorite NC Brewery, really took a different approach to make this IPA. It is no simple or traditional IPA. And here's why: The look of this beer is a dark but translucent amber color, which is much darker than any IPA I've scene. The aroma is packed with floral herbs and a sharp bitterness that foreshadowed the taste. The first couple of sips really sold me on Rocket Science. This well structured beer has a piney taste with whispers of grapefruit and a clean finish. The combination of three extremely different varieties of hops really makes this beer sophisticated and dramatic. It doesn't take a rocket scientist to see this is a high quality beer that challenges the palate and nose.

Rating: 85/100

Day 69: Gaelic Ale

Name: Gaelic Ale

Brewer: Highland Brewing (Asheville, NC)

Classification: American Amber Ale

Alcohol: 5.8%

Thoughts: Highland Brewing is based in Asheville, NC which, for you that do not know, is in the Appalachian Mountains. If you have ever been there it may remind you of photos you have seen of the Scottish Highlands. It is the perfect place in the US to make Scottish style beers. And that is just what Highland does. The first one I will be testing is their flagship drink, Gaelic Ale. I have had this before at an Irish Pub downtown Raleigh with some Bangers & Mash and it was amazing. Let's see how it stands up to the test of time, because that was 3 years ago. The appearance of this beer is a murky reddish brown with a tan head that failed to gain any momentum. The taste was somewhat of a let down. I expected it to be swift to the nostrils and fresh on the brain. It was fairly normal for any amber ale with bready malts and hints of pine and vanilla. As I drank the beer, the nuttiness, earthiness and notes of toffee washed over my tongue and reminded me of why I liked this beer so much. You can hold a big pint of this while you are loud and obnoxious at a bar and not feel like a dick. Because it was made for a Scotsman to drink, and that's what Scotsman do. Overall it needs some work, but this is another of my "Experience Brews". 

Rating: 84/100

Day 68: Two-Hearted Ale

Name: Two-Hearted Ale

Brewer: Bell's Brewery (Kalamazoo, MI)

Classification: American IPA

Alcohol: 7%

Thoughts: When it comes to alcoholic drinks you have many options. There is wine, liquor, mixed drinks, and of course there is beer. In all of these you can taste alcohol, that thing that gets you drunk. Some drinks have a high alcohol content and some have a high alcohol taste. I have had beers with low alcohol content and a high alcohol taste. These beers are usually of low quality. There are also beers with a high alcohol content and a low alcohol taste. These are usually higher quality beers. Two Hearted Ale is the latter. It pours a slightly opaque orangey-gold with a fluffy off-white head that laced around the glass. When you smell this crisp IPA you get loads of grapefruit and hints of pine and grass. The taste is a wish-wash of flavors like citrus, lemongrass, bitter hops and cream. It feels like orange juice in your gullet. This is a classic American IPA with all of the right smells and tastes. Nowhere in the description did I mention alcohol until now. It is there. I can feel the slight burn in the back of my throat, but it is restrained and comfortable. It is important that craft brewers, or all brewers in general, do this. This makes the beer more desirable and enjoyable. Well done Bell's!

Rating: 85/100

Day 67: Track One

Name: Track One Amber Ale

Brewer: Roanoke Railroad Brewing (Roanoke, VA)

Classification: American Amber Ale

Alcohol: 4.8%

Thoughts: Yesterday I said I had to choose from a small selection at the local grocery store and apparently I went 0 for 2. Both my choices were poor. I thought to myself, "Am I wasting my money when I choose crappy beers?" I pondered it for a while and I came up with my answer. No. If I don't drink a few beers that make my bollocks cringe then I can't truly appreciate the beers that make my bollocks tingle. I guess it is like that in most aspects of life. If you don't read a few Twilights every now and then you can't understand the greatness of Harry Potter. If you don't listen to a few Republicans then you can't appreciate the sense that Democrats make. I think you get the point. Well, this was one of those beers that make you appreciate the La Fin Du Monde's and Augustiner Brau Edelstoffs. So for this, I salute you Track One, I salute you! 

Rating: 67/100

Day 66: Kingfisher Premium

Name: Kingfisher Premium

Brewer: United Breweries (Bangalore, India)

Classification: American Pale Lager

Alcohol: 4.8%

Thoughts: On the way home I realized that I was out of beers for the blog at the home, well luckily I had to swing by the grocery store to pick up some tortillas for the enchiladas we were making for dinner. So I went in the beer isle to pick out a couple of beers. I was left standing with the statement "Go big or go home" in my head, because I had to chose big individual bottles or literally go home. So I chose a couple that I hadn't had before and the first one is this Kingfisher Premium. I did a little research and discovered that this is a beer from India, but it is owned by a company that owns like 3,002 other companies, so I then rightly assumed it would taste boring and mass produced. Welllllll, I was right! It looked like shortcuts, smelled like cheapness and tasted like yesterday's bagels for today's price. If this was cheaper I would drink it, but it was the same price as beers like Stella Artois and Newcastle. F that S!

Rating: 72/100

Day 65: Peak Organic Amber Ale

Name: Peak Organic Amber Ale

Brewer: Peak Organic Brewing Co. (Portland, ME)

Classification: Amber Ale

Alcohol: 5%

Thoughts: A lot goes into the pour of a beer. Especially from a bottle. My technique involves pouring it straight in to build a little head. Then I tilt the glass and pour the beer down the side of the glass until the head gets to the edge of the glass. I top it off with what ever is left in the bottle. It is not fool proof, but it works for me. I, of course, tried that today and the result is below. That was after a little pour so I decided to drink the rest out of the bottle. This means I cannot honestly tell you how this pours, but it is an Amber Ale, so one can only assume. The alcohol in this beer shot out of the bottle like a crackhead on meth being chased by cops. It left me a little dazed and I had to recheck how much alcohol was in the beer. The taste wasn't much different. I had to hold it in the back of my mouth until I had the balls to swallow it. Once I did I tasted a hint of biscuity malt and some bitter hops. The finish was better then the initial taste, which is unusual for a brew. However, this was not a beer for me. Maybe somebody else would have liked this beer, but not me. But if you have a pouring technique for this beer please let me know. 

Rating: 69/100

Day 64: Palm Amber

Name: Palm Amber

Brewer: Brouwerij Palm NV (Steenhuffel, Belgium)

Classification: Belgian Pale Ale

Alcohol: 5.4%

Thoughts: Laura (the wife) and I did our usual weekend thing by grabbing lunch and a brewski at Tyler's. It has become are favorite place to eat cause we can sit outside, drink good beer and eat good food. I was looking through their leather-bound beer menu and Palm Amber was what I ended up ordering. It came to me in this great snifter glass. It poured a solid amber color with a thin yet highly carbonated head. The smell was a combination of herbs, dark fruits and biscuity malts. It was pretty similar to a lot of Belgian Pale Ales. The taste was extremely balanced and drinkable to the last drop. The dryness of the malts was the most obvious of the things I noticed. However there was some undertones of pepper and lemon peel. I didn't really know much about this beer before I drank it and I really didn't learn much after I drank it. It was a good beer and I would drink it again, but nothing about   intrigued me. Then I found out that it is a mass produced Belgium beer and that was all I needed to know. 

Rating: 80/100

Day 63: Verboten Belgian-Style Pale Ale

Name: Verboten Belgian-Style Pale Ale

Brewer: Weyerbacher Brewing Co. (Easton, PA)

Classification: Belgian Pale Ale

Alcohol: 5.9%

Thoughts: I am going to make this a short post and just name all of the things this beer reminded me of. They are yeast, biscuit, tea, banana, orange peel, pepper, coriander, nutmeg, molasses, honey, flowers, lemon, bubblegum, sugar and freshly baked wheat bread. It is a damn good Belgian Pale Ale. Props to America for creating a Belgian Pale Ale that Belgians would like. 

Rating: 88/100

Day 62: Wildflower Witbier

Name: Wildflower Witbier

Brewer: Natty Greene's Brewing Co. (Greensboro, NC)

Classification: Witbier

Alcohol: 4.5%

Thoughts: Natty Greene's may be brewed about an hour and a half west of here in Greensboro but they have big present right here in the Triangle. They have a restaurant/pub in Raleigh, they have a stand at Durham Bulls baseball games and their beer can be found everywhere. I have had a number of their beers, but I was hesitant to try the Witbier because I wasn't really a fan of their Amber Ale or Pale Ale. But, I was in the mood for a little home cooking. When poured, this NC brew is a dirty golden orange with a 3 finger thick white head. The number one thing I notice in both the smell and taste is sweetness. It may come from different things but its as much a part of this beer as making shit up is to the Tea Party. The smell is also flowery with hints of melon and honey. The taste surprised me because I thought it was going to be overly sweet, but it is nicely balanced out with spicy coriander and zesty orange peel. The aftertaste is quite different for a Witbier because there is a thickness to the beer to go along with the tingle that runs down the back of your throat. This is the best of the brews I have had from Natty Greene's, but it doesn't make up for the disappointment I have felt after their other beers. 

Rating: 83/100

Day 61: Dixie

Name: Dixie

Brewer: Dixie Brewing Co. (New Orleans, LA)

Classification: American Adjunct Lager

Alcohol: 4.6%

Thoughts: I like to pair my beers with food. I spend a good amount of time thinking of pairings when I select my brews, but I don't talk about it enough on this blog. Mostly because I don't remember to do it, but also because sometimes my pairings fail miserably. Well today I hit the mark on my pairing. I paired  Dixie with a cajun kabob or chicken, spicy peppers, onions and cajun season. I did this because this beer is from N'Orleans so it should work well. The beer poured a yellow-gold with a thin head. The smell had buttery notes and hints of sweet malts and grilled corn. It smelled like cornbread before you bake it. The taste was extremely sweet, almost to a fault. This could have been more of the butter and sweet malts. There is no bitterness and it is quite simple. The simplicity is key because it allows for spicy, complex flavors in food to open up but at the same time remain enjoyable. There are a lot of beers that get overpowered by food or others that can ruin the food. This one sat in the backseat while the food drove the car but they both go to the same place at the same time. With all this gloating and praising of this beer, it is really just an average beer. I just had a good experience with it. But I will be drinking it again. 

Rating: 76/100

Day 60: Tucher Helles Hefeweizen

Name: Tucher Helles Hefeweizen

Brewer: Tucher Bräu (Nuremberg, Germany)

Classification: Hefeweizen

Alcohol: 5.3%

Thoughts: When it comes to hefeweizen there is one country that stands above the rest. Way above the rest. That country would be the home of Ze Germans. They make ze bezt hefeweizens in ze worldz. But you say "Kyle, present your evidence for this outrageous claim!" I say "Here you go Mother Flippers, Tucher!" Bam! Roasted! This German Hefe pours a cloudy pale gold with a massive fluffy head. The aroma is that of banana, clove and a bright citrus smell. It is a full-bodied brew with the perfect amount of carbonation. This beer tastes like a little slice of heaven's clouds. It is sweet, filled with yeast and an appropriate spiciness that balances out the beer nicely. All kidding aside, Hefeweizens are to Germany as berets are to France or spray tans are to New Jersey. They just know how to do it right. And Tucher is a prime evidence of a really good, traditional Bavarian Hefeweizen.

Rating: 87/100

Day 59: Laughing Skull

Name: Laughing Skull

Brewer: Red Brick Brewing Co. (Atlanta, GA)

Classification: Amber Ale

Alcohol: 5.7%

Thoughts: A good Amber Ale is drinkable just about anytime and anywhere with any person in any part of the world. It is a very versatile brew that I use as a go to beer when I am not in the mood for a specific beer. The reason for this is the same reason that makes Laughing Skull a pretty decent beer. See if you can figure it out. It pours a clear amber (that's why it is called an Amber Ale) with a highly carbonated head. The aroma is strangely similar to biscuits with apricot jelly. When you drink this beer it is smooth and the drinkablility is very high. The taste is dry with hints of sweet caramel and hidden hops. Again, very easy to drink and enjoyable at the same time. Did I say that it goes down the throat easy? The only problem with this beer is that despite it being a good beer and well made, there is nothing that sets it apart from other Amber Ales. Some people would think this is a good thing, but as a craft brewer, you need to set yourself apart. Oh well, it is still a right good brew and pretty drinkable. 

Rating: 83/100

Day 58: Newcastle Winter IPA

Name: Newcastle Winter IPA

Brewer: The Caledonian Brewery Co. LTD (Edinburgh, Scotland)

Brewed in Newcastle, England

Classification: English IPA

Alcohol: ?

Thoughts: Newcastle's Winter IPA is the other sample I was sent. If you notice the picture about is not a real photo. That is because this brew has yet to be released on the world. You may have also noticed that this is a Winter IPA. Usually IPAs are summery and the complete opposite of what you would want in a winter beer. However, the English live in England, where it is rainy, cold and the food sucks. So beer is made weather appropriate. Which means it is rich, flavorful and will keep you warm through out the season. Does this Winter IPA match up? Let's see. It pours a lucid brown with a two-finger white head. The smell is very traditional for an IPA with hops, caramel, and malty undertones. This brew feels smooth, yet powerful. The taste seems familiar, almost nostalgic. It tastes mostly like sweet malts, with hops trying to get in on the show but falling short of overcoming the dominant malt character, which fades into alcoholic notes. Don't think that last sentence means this brew falls short of being good. No, not at all. The taste is quite special. It is like a an old friend pulling a knife on you and yelling, "How you like me now?", exciting and dangerous but safe and comfortable. I rather like this beer. But does it fit the label of being a Winter IPA. In one word, Yes. It is rich, it is flavorful and I feel like it warms my body as it goes down my throat. A feeling that is even better during the cold season than it does now at the end of the summer. But let me be honest. It works pretty well now too. 

Rating: 85/100

Day 57: Newcastle Werewolf

Name: Newcastle Werewolf

Brewer:  The Caledonian Brewery Co. LTD (Edinburgh, Scotland)
Brewed in Newcastle, England

Classification: English Brown Ale

Alcohol: 5%

Thoughts: If you look up on the bar below the blog title there is a page button that says Beer Me. It is meant for people/breweries that want to send me samples to try for the blog. Honestly, I never thought it would work, but low and behold someone clicked it and decided they wanted to send some new brews they were releasing. It was some company from across the pond called ... Oh what was it again? ... Oh, Yeah! NEWCASTLE!!! Yeah the same ones that make one of the most legendary beers in the world! You can check out the pictures of the package they sent me on the Beer Me page. They had some new seasonal beers that they brewed after the success of their Newcastle Summer Ale.  The first one I will be trying is their Autumn seasonal, Werewolf. It pours a dark coppery-red with a dirty white head. The aroma is understated but a nice fit for fall. There are floral notes, hints of rye and the basic malty smell you you get from an English Brown Ale. The feel of this beer was simply great! It was rich, creamy and I could feel the sediment on my tongue as I sipped it. The taste of Werewolf was like Inception. The top layer was alcohol, chocolate and rye. The taste within a taste was slightly bitter with notes of bready, smokey malts. And the taste within a taste within a taste had faint hints of sweet berries. It is a truly complex and challenging beer. It could have a more definitive taste, but that may be why this brew intrigued me. It could be a Brown Ale, it could be a heavy Red Ale, or it could be light Porter. You should check it out and let me know what it is to you. The name Werewolf is a big name to fulfill in my mind. To me it means this beer will put hair on your knuckles (as well as everywhere else) and give you a blood thirst that can only be satisfied by devouring wenches from the 1500s. This beer falls inches short of that vision, but it is a quality Autumn beer. 

Rating: 84/100

Day 56: Saranac Summer Brew

Name: Saranac Summer Brew

Brewer: Matt Brewing Co. (Utica, NY)

Classification: Fruit/Vegetable Lager

Alcohol: 3.5% 

Thoughts: Beer and Lemonade? Are you shitting me? Looks like piss and tastes like piss! That is all!

Rating: 40/100

Day 55: Tire Bite Golden Ale

Name: Tire Bite Golden Ale

Brewer: Flying Dog Brewery (Frederick, MD)

Classification: Kölsch

Alcohol: 5.1%

Thoughts: Flying Dog is a cool brewery that worships the likes of Hunter S. Thompson, George Stranahan and Ralph Steadman. Which is pretty outrageous in my mind because so do I. These are amazing men that consistently pushed the boundaries of writing, life and sanity. Flying Dog says they are trying to be the brewing form of these men. Well, if they were trying to do that Tire Bite wouldn't taste identical to PBR. Even though PBR runs in my veins it is a mass produced Hipster-soda that is made great by the fact that it cost $4.59 for a six-pack! Tire Bite came in at a whopping $1.79 a bottle! Are you shitting me? Give me the PBR anyday! 

Rating: 54/100 

Day 54: Wolaver's Pale Ale

Name: Wolaver's Pale Ale

Brewer: Wolaver's (Middlebury, VT)

Classification: Pale Ale

Alcohol: 5.8% 

Thoughts: I live in Durham, NC, if you haven't figured it out by now. The people of Durham are very into buying and suppling local, organic foods to eat. There are a number of farms on the outskirts of Durham and we have an amazing Farmer's Market on Saturday's. I have started to "drink the Kool-Aid" and have become a huge fan of local and organic foods. With this said, this is the first organic beer I have ever had. This Wolaver's Pale Ale has a similar hazy amber color that reminds me of apple cider. The smell is grainy, malty and earthy, but very subdued. If I judged this beer on its first sip only, it would have been given a failing grade. However, as my "blog motto" goes, "... it is better to be sure and drink the whole thing." So, I did. A few more creamy sips brought me a nice malty taste, bitterness and some hints of apple. This beer did not wow me in any way, but it did taste and feel clean and fresh. I truly hope this is because it is an organic beer. I hope to try some more organic beers, especially from a company that specializes in organic brew. 

Rating: 77/100