Category Archives: 4 – Good (buy)

4 - Good (buy), American Double IPA, Beer Reviews, Pipeworks Brewing Company, USA

Pipeworks Ninja Vs. Unicorn

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Brewery: Pipeworks Brewing Company
Country: USA
ABV: 8%
Style: American Double IPA

Brewer Description: Not much info on the can or the official website.

My rating: 4
My beeradvocate.com rating: 4.5
My ratebeer.com rating: 4.4

Intro: A 1 pint can, canned on 14th April 2017. Poured into a Lost Abbey teku glass.
Appearance: A slightly hazy golden orange colour with a two finger white head that had good retention and left great lacing.
Aroma: Very nice tropical mango, peach and pineapple with hints of citrusy orange rind.
Taste: Grapefruit, mango, caramel, bready malt, pine, orange and orange pith giving it a nice bitter finish. There was hints of booze here and there, but this doesn’t take away from how good it tastes.
Mouthfeel: Medium bodied with moderate carbonation.
Overall: A very nice DIPA that is balanced and with great flavours. Very close to being a must buy for me.

4 - Good (buy), American IPA, Beer Reviews, Cigar City Brewing, USA

Cigar City Jai Alai India Pale Ale

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Brewery: Cigar City Brewing
Country: USA
ABV: 7.5%
Style: American IPA

Brewer Description: (from can) Jai Alai, the “merry game,” is a game native to the Basque region of Spain. Tampa was once home to this high speed game, but sadly all that remains here is this India Pale Ale that we brewed in tribute to the merry game. Pair Jai Alai India Pale Ale with Empanadas, Deviled Crabs and other spicy dishes.

My rating: 4
My beeradvocate.com rating: 3.98
My ratebeer.com rating: 3.9

Intro: A 12 fl oz can with a canned on date of 21st March 2017. Poured into a Lost Abbey teku glass.
Appearance: A slightly hazy light copper orange colour with a two finger slightly off white head that had great retention and left lots of nice lacing.
Aroma: Lots of citrus grapefruit peel, orange rind and lemon with hints of tropical pineapple and pine.
Taste: A nice sweet-ish malty caramel and biscuit backbone, followed by some nice citrus grapefruit and orange with a touch of pineapple and a mildly bitter finish.
Mouthfeel: Medium bodied with moderate carbonation.
Overall: To be fair, perhaps this was hidden in my fridge a bit too long. It was however, still well balanced and enjoyable to drink.

4 - Good (buy), Beavertown Brewery, Beer Reviews, England, IPA - Black

Beavertown Black Betty

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Brewery: Beavertown Brewery
Country: England
ABV: 7.4%
Style: American Black IPA
Other Notes: 75 IBUs. Malts – Best Pale, Caragold, Caramalt, Carafa II and Carafa III. Hops – Colombus, Chinook and Citra

Brewer Description: (from website) So it’s a contradiction in terms. A Black India Pale Ale?! The concept we came up with revolved around the old chewy sweets ‘Black Jacks & Fruit Salads’. We wanted to take a big, fat IPA and lace it with under- tones of slight roast and aniseed and blend with the huge tropical aromas of Pacific West coast hops. We gained the hint of roast by using Carafa malts from Germany. They give us the dark colour and a touch of roast but minimal bitterness, thus letting the hops fly and fly!

My rating: 4
My beeradvocate.com rating: 4.33
My ratebeer.com rating: 4.2

Intro: A 330ml can with a best before date of 1st September 2017. Poured into a Lost Abbey teku glass.
Appearance: It was a dark dark brown colour with a one and a half finger tanned head that had good retention and left some nice spotty lacing.
Aroma: Citrus peels with some nice roasty malts and cocoa.
Taste: It’s pretty much what you would expect from the aromas with nice citrus flavours, balanced with roasty malts and hints of chocolate and coffee. There is also a lingering grapefruit finish.
Mouthfeel: Medium bodied with moderate carbonation.
Overall: A good Black IPA that is very easy to drink. It’s 7.4% ABV but feels very sessionable. Quite a dangerous combination.

4 - Good (buy), Beer Reviews, Belgium, Brouwerij Lindemans, Lambic - Gueuze

Lindemans Oude Gueuze Cuvée René Special Blend 2010

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Brewery: Brouwerij Lindemans
Country: Belgium
ABV: 6%
Style: Belgian Lambic (Gueuze)
Other Notes: Grand Cru. Limited Edition

Brewer Description: (from bottle) This Old Gueuze produced by the Lindemans Brewery is an exclusive blend of 4 year old Lambic with young Lambic, fermented in oak barrels and refermented in the bottle. Golden colour, slightly sour, smooth Gueuze with a sherry-like aroma. The Gueuze for beer connoisseurs. Limited edition of 15,000 bottles.

My rating: 4
My beeradvocate.com rating: 4.42
My ratebeer.com rating: 4.4

Intro: A 750ml bottle, bottled in June 2014 and a best before date of 2024. Poured into a Lindemans flute glass.
Appearance: A clear golden orange colour with a just over one finger white head that had pretty good retention and nice lacing.
Aroma: Citrusy lemon, lime, hints of orange, oak, pepper, damp hay, wet leather and a good amount of barnyard funk.
Taste: Lemon-lime, pear, apple peel, oak, lots of funk, barnyard, hay, lemon rind, vinegar bite and mustiness.
Mouthfeel: Crisp, medium to light bodied with high carbonation and a dry finish.
Overall: This surprised me in a good way. Very enjoyable with lots of funk, barnyard, wet hay and leather.

4 - Good (buy), Beer Reviews, Belgium, Brouwerij Lindemans, Lambic - Fruit

Lindemans Oude Kriek Cuvée René

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Brewery: Brouwerij Lindemans
Country: Belgium
ABV: 7%
Style: Belgian Lambic (Fruit)
Other Notes: 2016. No. 07578

Brewer Description: (from bottle) In Belgium brewing beer is considered a form of art. In our family this art has been passed down since 1822 from generation to generation. Our traditional Kriek Cuvée René Grand Cru is brewed with wild yeast from the surrounding air, water, malted barley, wheat, aged hop flowers and selected wild cherries. Deep cherry red clear body, tart taste with a moderate sourness and an authentic cherry skin presence. No added sugar.

My rating: 4
My beeradvocate.com rating: 4.38
My ratebeer.com rating: 4.2

Intro: A 375ml bottle, bottled on 9th December 2016 and with a best before date of 9th December 2022. Poured into a 3 Fonteinen stemmed glass.
Appearance: A very nice deep ruby red colour with a two finger pinkish-purple coloured head that had good retention but pretty much no lacing.
Aroma: Sweetish tart cherry juice followed by some barnyard funk and damp hay with hints of vinegar and oak.
Taste: Crisp sour tart cherries and mixed berries and oak with only hints of barnyard funk.
Mouthfeel: Medium to light bodied with moderate to high carbonation.
Overall: Crisp, easy to drink, nice tart cherry and enjoyable.