Category Archives: 4 – Good (buy)

4 - Good (buy), Beer Reviews, Brown Ale - Imperial, Clown Shoes Beer, USA

Clown Shoes The Barista

Tuesday, 10 May 2016 kitch Leave a comment

Brewery: Clown Shoes Beer
Country: USA
ABV: 8.5%
Style: Brown Ale – Imperial
Other Notes: Brewed with Espresso, Oatmeal and Milk Sugars. Brewed and bottled by Mercury Brewing Co., Ipswich, MA.

Brewer Description: (from bottle) A Clown Shoes legend, Brown Angel, put away her dancing shoes to focus on extracting espresso, brewing coffee, and pouring latte art with zen-like focus. The Barista Breakfast Brown is crafted with Maris Otter malt, flaked oatmeal, cold brewed espresso, milk sugars and the spirit of angel wings.

My rating: 4
My beeradvocate.com rating: 4.1
My ratebeer.com rating: 4

Intro: A 22 fl oz bomber bottled on 18th January 2016 and poured into a Duvel tulip glass.
Appearance: It poured a dark brown colour with a darkish orange hue and a slightly more than one finger khaki creamy head that had decent retention and left nice lacing.
Aroma: Roasty espresso and brown sugar with hints of hazelnuts, almonds and chocolate milk.
Taste: Sweet-ish brown sugar, toffee and cacao nibs. Espresso was there but surprisingly not as much as expected considering how strong it was in the aromas. There was also a light nuttiness in the background.
Mouthfeel: Medium to light bodied with light carbonation.
Overall: This was pretty good. The aromas were nice and the taste was pretty good although I was hoping for more coffee. On top of that, it was pretty light bodied whereas I was expecting something thicker and closer to being mid to full bodied.

4 - Good (buy), Beer Reviews, Founders Brewing Company, IPA - Black, USA

Founders Dark Penance

Friday, 6 May 2016 kitch Leave a comment

Brewery: Founders Brewing Company
Country: USA
ABV: 8.9%
Style: American Black IPA
Other Notes: 100 IBUs. Malts – Crystal and Midnight Wheat. Hops – Chinook and Centennial.

Brewer Description: (from bottle) A heavy malt foundation includes Crystal malt for sweetness and just enough Midnight Wheat malt to push the color to black. The bitterness is huge, but balanced by malt sweetness. The hop flavors and aromas range from citrus to floral to pine thanks to a delicious blend of hand-selected Chinook and Centennial hops.

My rating: 4
My beeradvocate.com rating: 4.1
My ratebeer.com rating: 4

Intro: A 12 fl oz bottle bottled on 14th September 2015 and poured into an oversized wine glass.
Appearance: It poured a deep dark dark brown colour with a one finger tan head that dissipated fairly quickly to a thin layer but left nice spotty lacing.
Aroma: Sweet roasty malt with some light pine and citrus orange in the background.
Taste: Light roasty coffee and chocolate with nice spikes of pine and citrus bitterness which lingers on the finish.
Mouthfeel: Medium bodied with moderate carbonation.
Overall: A nice Black IPA that balances the sweetness, roast and bitterness.

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

Surly Abrasive Ale

Thursday, 5 May 2016 kitch Leave a comment

Brewery: Surly Brewing Company
Country: USA
ABV: 9%
Style: American Double IPA
Other Notes: Malts – 2-Row and Golden Naked Oats. Hops – Warrior and Citra.

Brewer Description: (from can) Sure we’re abrasive. We were abrasive long before we were Surly. If you visit the brewery you can still see remnants of the industrial manufacturing factory Omar’s parents ran for 35 years within those same 4 walls. Bandsaw blades, grinding wheels, and sanding discs came long before ales and lagers. But let’s be honest, this is a lot more fun. Pale in color, this over-hopped, under-brewed Double IPA has almost twice the amount of hops & malt crammed in the can.

My rating: 4
My beeradvocate.com rating: 4.09
My ratebeer.com rating: 4

Intro: A 16 fl oz can canned on 3rd December 2015 and poured into a Spiegelau IPA glass.
Appearance: It poured a slightly hazy golden orange colour with a slightly less than three finger off white head that had good retention and left nice lacing.
Aroma: Strong mix of tropical and citrus fruit with mango, pineapple, orange, grapefruit and pine.
Taste: Lightly sweet, candied orange, pineapple, orange zest, grapefruit pith and pine. There’s some interesting caramel and light spiciness mixed in on the finish.
Mouthfeel: Medium bodied with moderate carbonation.
Overall: This was a very nice DIPA with a good tropical and citrus punch and just a touch of sweetness which is nice. I would love to be able to try a fresher can.

4 - Good (buy), Beer Reviews, Belgian Pale Ale, The Bruery x Maine Beer Company, USA

The Bruery x Maine Fourthmeal

Thursday, 5 May 2016 kitch Leave a comment

Brewery: The Bruery x Maine Beer Company
Country: USA
ABV: 6.9%
Style: Belgian Pale Ale
Other Notes: Collaboration Series. Hoppy Belgian-style ale.

Brewer Description: (from bottle) The Bruery and Maine Beer Company got together and cooked up something special for you: fourthmeal. It isn’t brunch; it isn’t “linner.” It’s a hoppy Belgian-style ale that brings aspects of both breweries to the table: fruity, Belgian yeast esters, a crisp, bready backbone, citrus and piney hop characteristics, and a dry, hop-forward finish. There’s no one shouting “come n’ git it” when it’s time to dine – just mouth-watering, dry-hopped aromatics, signalling that it’s time for fourthmeal. This beer is best enjoyed fresh.

My rating: 4
My beeradvocate.com rating: 4.06
My ratebeer.com rating: 3.9

Intro: A 750ml bottle from batch #280, bottled on 9th December 2015 and poured into an oversized wine glass.
Appearance: It poured a hazy golden orange colour with a one finger slightly off white head with decent retention and very nice lacing.
Aroma: Mandarin orange, pine, candied malt, grass and light grapefruit pith.
Taste: Light citrusy candy orange, bready malt, pound cake, light bitter herby pine and grass with a light peppery finish.
Mouthfeel: Crisp, dry, medium bodied with medium prickly carbonation.
Overall: This was nice. Medium bodied but very light crisp easy drinking. Wish I could have tried this earlier for a fresher point of view.

4 - Good (buy), Beer Reviews, Belgian Dubbel, Bierbrouwerij De Koningshoeven B.V., Netherlands

La Trappe Dubbel

Tuesday, 3 May 2016 kitch Leave a comment

Brewery: Bierbrouwerij De Koningshoeven B.V.
Country: Netherlands
ABV: 7%
Style: Belgian Dubbel
Other Notes: Trappist beer

Brewer Description: (from bottle) Discover this genuine dark Trappist beer, with a gentle, flavour, creamy head and pronounced bouquet.

My rating: 4
My beeradvocate.com rating: 4.25
My ratebeer.com rating: 4.2

Intro: A 330ml bottle with a best before date of July 2016, poured into a Chimay goblet glass.
Appearance: It poured a deep dark brown / amber colour with a one finger beige head that dissipated fairly quickly but left nice lacing.
Aroma: Raisins, dried cherry, toasted malts, caramel, toffee and bubblegum.
Taste: Sweet dark stone fruits of plum, prunes, raisin and cherry, grape juice, banana and a light toffee finish.
Mouthfeel: Creamy, medium bodied with moderate carbonation.
Overall: A very nice Dubbel that is tasty and easy to drink.

words of another dreamy traveller