Category Archives: 3 – Indifferent (might buy, probably drink)

3 - Indifferent (might buy, probably drink), American Triple IPA, Beer Reviews, Heretic Brewing Co., USA

Heretic Evil3

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Brewery: Heretic Brewing Co.
Country: USA
ABV: 11.5
Style: American Triple IPA
Other Notes: McDole, Steele, Zainasheff

Brewer Description: (from can) This is the story of three friends: Tasty McDole, Mitch Steele, and Jamil Zainasheff. Three bold men with hops in their blood and crazy in their hearts. Once a year these three passionate brewers come together to concoct a beer that represents their lifelong bond. A beer that is bold. A beer that is hoppy. A beer to share with your best friends.

My rating: 3
My beeradvocate.com rating: 3.87
My ratebeer.com rating: 3.6

Intro: A 1 pint can, canned on 27th January 2020. Poured into a Lost Abbey teku glass.
Appearance: A nice clear golden orange colour with a two finger white head that had excellent retention and left some nice lacing.
Aroma: Sweet malts, grapefruit, dried candied fruit, citrus peel and notes of pine.
Taste: Sweet malts, caramel, candied grapefruit peel, citrus zest, grapefruit, pine, booze and some light bitterness in the background.
Mouthfeel: Medium to full bodied with moderate carbonation.
Overall: Nice candied aroma, but perhaps slightly too sweet and heavy for me. The bitterness in the background does help a bit though.

3 - Indifferent (might buy, probably drink), Beer Reviews, Belgium, Brouwerij Alvinne, Wild Ale

Alvinne Laurelin 2016 Fellowship Ale N°4

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Brewery: Brouwerij Alvinne
Country: Belgium
ABV: 8%
Style: American Wild Ale
Other Notes: 2018 Fellowship. Cuvée Sofie Schaarbeekse Kriek (2016). Fruit Flemish Sour Ale. Sweet 1/5, Sour 4/5 & Bitter 0/5

Brewer Description: (from bottle) Laurelin was one of Two Trees of Valinor. It was said to be some sort of cherry tree, her last fruit was made into the sun. In July we added 25kg of Schaarbeekse Kriek to a Domaine Noelat Michel red wine (Bourgogne/Vosne-Romannée) barrel. This Cuvée Sofie aged for 28 months in this first time used Hungarian oak barrel.

My rating: 3
My beeradvocate.com rating: 3.8
My ratebeer.com rating: 3.6

Intro: A 330ml bottle, with a best before date of January 2024. Poured into an Alvinne teku glass.
Appearance: A cloudy dull reddish brown colour with a thin white head that left only sparse lacing.
Aroma: Sweet, oak, vanilla, cherry, marzipan, more wood, barnyard, and lightly tart.
Taste: Tart, sweet, sour, cherry, cherry wine, oak, vanilla, marzipan, with a splash of vinegar.
Mouthfeel: Medium bodied with moderate carbonation.
Overall: Given the sour and sweet ratings on the bottle label, this was a lot sweeter than I expected. That in itself is not really a problem. However despite the nice cherry notes, I felt that the oak barrel imparted quite a lot of vanilla into the flavour, and probably more than I prefer. I tried this side by side with Laurelin 2017 Fellowship Ale N°5, and I easily preferred the 2017 version more.

3 - Indifferent (might buy, probably drink), Beer Reviews, Belgium, Brouwerij Loterbol x Brouwerij 3 Fonteinen, Lambic - non-Lambic Blends

Loterbol x 3 Fonteinen Tuverbol

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Brewery: Brouwerij Loterbol x Brouwerij 3 Fonteinen
Country: Belgium
ABV: 9%
Style: Belgian Lambic (non-Lambic blends)
Other Notes: Ratebeer shows it as 90% Loterbol Blond and 10% 3 Fonteinen Lambic blend.

Brewer Description: (from bottle in Dutch) Mengeling van Loterbol Blond en 3 Fonteinen Lambik. Spontaan hergist in de fles. Niet gefilterd.

(Translated from Dutch to Engilsh) Mix of Loterbol Blond and 3 Fonteinen Lambik. Spontaneously re-fermented in the bottle. Not filtered.

My rating: 3
My beeradvocate.com rating: 3.5
My ratebeer.com rating: 3.5

Intro: A 375ml corked and caged bottle (grey/silver cap), 2017 vintage, with a best before date of end of 2022. Poured into a 3 Fonteinen stemmed glass.
Appearance: A lightly hazy golden orange colour with a two finger white head that had good retention, but eventually settled to a thin cap, while leaving lots of nice lacing.
Aroma: Funk, brett, light tartness, apple, grape, and maybe a splash of candi sugar and notes of citrus.
Taste: Lightly sour, citrus zest, apple, grape, Belgian yeast spiciness, and a bitter finish with some boozy notes.
Mouthfeel: Dry, medium bodied with moderate carbonation.
Overall: The lambic doesn’t come through as much as I hoped, but then again, I read that it was only 10% blend. I think overall it was interesting, but not really my preference especially the somewhat stronger boozy notes than expected.

3 - Indifferent (might buy, probably drink), Beer Reviews, Denmark, Mikkeller ApS x Three Floyds Brewing Co., Wheatwine / Ryewine / Ricewine

Mikkeller x Three Floyds Risgoop

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Brewery: Mikkeller ApS x Three Floyds Brewing Co.
Country: Denmark
ABV: 10.4%
Style: Ricewine
Other Notes: Rice Beer

Brewer Description: (from Three Floyds website) Behold! The fifth collaborative effort of Three Floyds and Mikkeller. This complex ale is just the beverage for canal boat trips in Copenhagen or the brutal Chicago winter. Brewed in Europe and in Chicago, you can look for both editions and the subtle differences in each. Cheers and thanks for supporting craft beer.

My rating: 3
My beeradvocate.com rating: 3.83
My ratebeer.com rating: 3.7

Intro: A 750ml bottle with a best before date of 1st April 2020 (drank before that date, I’m just behind in my reviews). Poured into a snifter glass.
Appearance: A hazy amber orange colour with a one finger beige head that had decent retention while leaving only sparse mini spotty lacing.
Aroma: Sweet malt, pineapple juice, orange candy, lime peel, caramel, pine, and dried citrus fruit.
Taste: Bitter, citrus rind, citrus peel, fruit tea, caramel, pine, dates, pineapple juice, and a lightly sweet and boozy finish.
Mouthfeel: Medium to full bodied with soft carbonation.
Overall: Not what I expected as it was more bitter that I expected. That’s not to say that it doesn’t work or anything, as despite the bitter and sweetness, it was still an enjoyable sipper.

3 - Indifferent (might buy, probably drink), Against The Grain Brewery x Brouwerij De Molen, Beer Reviews, Stout - Imperial, USA

Against The Grain x De Molen Bo & Luke (Tequila Barrel)

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Brewery: Against The Grain Brewery x Brouwerij De Molen
Country: USA
ABV: 13%
Style: American Imperial Stout
Other Notes: 2016 gold wax. Tequila barrel aged

Brewer Description: (from bottle) It beats all you ever saw! This barrel-aged ale uses the staple ingredients barley, rye and corn, plus cherry wood smoked malt to create a huge imperial stout. To top it all off, we barrel age the beer for three Kentucky months! The result is a rich and complex Imperial Smoked Stout with hints of caramel, vanilla and spice.

My rating: 3
My beeradvocate.com rating: 3.76
My ratebeer.com rating: 3.6

Intro: A gold waxed 750ml bottle with no clear bottled on or best before date, but should be 2016 vintage. Poured into a snifter glass.
Appearance: Dark dark brown to black in colour with a one finger tanned head that had decent retention, and left spotty lacing.
Aroma: Roasty, chocolate, oak, soft sweet notes of tequila, and a touch of smoke.
Taste: Light roast, chocolate, cocoa, oak, and subtle notes of tequila and smoke.
Mouthfeel: Medium bodied with soft carbonation.
Overall: Not as good as the other 2106 variants (red wine barrel and Islay scotch barrel) as the smoke and tequila were rather subtle, and the body was for some reason, lighter than I’d hope for.