Category Archives: Beer Reviews

4 - Good (buy), Beer Reviews, Crooked Stave Artisan Beer Project, USA, Wild Ale

Crooked Stave Petite Sour Pure Guava

Tuesday, 15 November 2016 kitch Leave a comment

Brewery: Crooked Stave Artisan Beer Project
Country: USA
ABV: 5.5%
Style: American Wild Ale

Brewer Description: (from bottle) Mixed fermentation ale aged in oak with tropical fruits.

My rating: 4
My beeradvocate.com rating: 4.13
My ratebeer.com rating: 3.9

Intro: A 375ml bottle bottled in August 2015, poured into a Cantillon ballon glass.
Appearance: It poured a hazy golden colour with a less than one finger white head that dissipated almost immediately and leaves only sparse to no lacing.
Aroma: Funk, sour, tartness and oak. Tropical fruit, mostly guava, passionfruit and mango.
Taste: Sour, tart and funky. Fruit is a bit light, but its there. Citrus lemon followed by some tropical guava and grapes. Lightly oaky on the finish.
Mouthfeel: Light to medium bodied with moderate to high carbonation.
Overall: Nice tart sourness but the fruit especially guava (since that is in the name) was on the light side.

2 - Maybe (likely wouldn't buy, might drink), Beer Reviews, Belgium, Brouwerij van Hoegaarden, Fruit Beer

Hoegaarden Rosée

Tuesday, 15 November 2016 kitch Leave a comment

Brewery: Brouwerij van Hoegaarden
Country: Belgium
ABV: 3%
Style: Fruit Beer

Brewer Description: (from website) The story of the jam jars gave us an idea. Hoegaarden Rosée. It might be pink but it is very much a wheat beer. It also features the soft taste and subtle colour of raspberries. And while it doesn’t feature a higher alcohol percentage, it does mean you can enjoy it even more in the sun.

My rating: 2
My beeradvocate.com rating: 2.73
My ratebeer.com rating: 2.5

Intro: A 250ml bottle with a best before date of 4th May 2017, poured into a Moonzen teku glass.
Appearance: It poured a cloudy reddish pinkish orange colour with a two finger off white head that dissipated quickly and left some lacing.
Aroma: Sweet candy raspberry and strawberry with perhaps a touch of grape juice.
Taste: Sweet candied raspberries followed by apple juice. The finish is somewhat watered down such that any taste becomes really weak.
Mouthfeel: Light bodied with moderate to high carbonation.
Overall: I’m actually fine with the artificial candy berry flavours, but that taste on the finish of being watered down is what disappoints me most.

4 - Good (buy), Avery Brewing Company, Beer Reviews, Pumpkin Ale, USA

Avery Pump[KY]n

Monday, 14 November 2016 kitch Leave a comment

Brewery: Avery Brewing Company
Country: USA
ABV: 15%
Style: Pumpkin Ale
Other Notes: Porter brewed with Pumpkin & Spices (nutmeg, cinnamon, allspice, clove) Aged in Bourbon Barrels

Brewer Description: (from bottle) What’s in a name? Sometimes the simplest can be the most descriptive, and in this case, derisive and divisive! After much internal debate (ad nauseum! Bourb[KY]n, anyone?), we decided a single letter change was the best way to embody the Bourbon barrel-aging that adds layers of complexity to an already exquisitely spiced pumpkin porter.

My rating: 4
My beeradvocate.com rating: 4.31
My ratebeer.com rating: 4.1

Intro: A 12 fl oz foiled bottle, Batch No.2, bottled on 7th November 2015. Poured into a snifter glass.
Appearance: It poured a clear dark brown amber colour with pretty much no khaki coloured head, but some sparse spotty lacing.
Aroma: Pumpkin pie, vanilla, cinnamon and a hit of boozy bourbon.
Taste: Sweet and spicy. Pumpkin pie, caramel, brown sugar, clove, cinnamon, nutmeg and all-spice with notes of oak and bourbon booziness.
Mouthfeel: Lightly syrupy, full bodied, alcohol warming with light to moderate carbonation.
Overall: Wow this was nice. A Pumpkin Ale that’s perhaps approaching a Winter Warmer. Great pumpkin pie spice flavours and good use of the barrel. Its quite boozy at 15% and you do get it in the aroma and taste yet at the same time, I like it, which is rare for me. Perhaps it just works for this particular style. If more Pumpkin Ales were like this, I would definitely go for the style. Good job by Avery on this one.

4 - Good (buy), Beer Reviews, Gose - Fruit, Philippines, The Cebruery

Cebruery Guimaras Gose

Thursday, 10 November 2016 kitch Leave a comment

Brewery: The Cebruery
Country: Philippines
ABV: 4.3%
Style: Gose – Fruit
Other Notes: 7 IBUs. Hundreds of kilos of mangos

Brewer Description: (from bottle) First brewed in the 16th century near Leipzig, whose local water source was heavy in salts, the light, sour wheat beer that became known as Gose gets its characteristic tartness from a mixed yeast/Lactobacillus fermentation. We’re committed to bringing this historic style back from the brink of extinction but with a local twist, utilizing locally sourced souring bacteria, Filipino sea salt, and adding hundreds of kilos of mangoes to each and every batch. The interplay of salty and sour pairs beautifully with the subdued biscuity pilsner malts, earthy citrus zest of the coriander, and our unique combination of dry hops for that little something extra.

My rating: 4
My beeradvocate.com rating: 3.85
My ratebeer.com rating: 3.8

Intro: A 330ml bottle with no visible bottled on or best before date. Poured into a d’Achouffe tulip glass.
Appearance: It poured a cloudy golden straw orange colour with a two finger white head that had decent retention but not much lacing.
Aroma: Not too strong, but what I do get is lightly doughy with fruity mango and pineapple.
Taste: Sour, tart, mango with some light saltiness.
Mouthfeel: Light to medium bodied with moderate carbonation.
Overall: I like it. It is refreshing, easy to drink and has lots of mango, which I enjoy.

3 - Indifferent (might buy, probably drink), Beer Reviews, Czech Pilsner, Japan, Suntory

Suntory The Premium Malt’s Master’s Dream

Thursday, 10 November 2016 kitch Leave a comment

Brewery: Suntory
Country: Japan
ABV: 5%
Style: Czech Pilsner

Brewer Description: (from bottle) The Master Brewer’s dream brought to life. An unprecedented harmony of heritage and innovation in Beer.

My rating: 3
My beeradvocate.com rating: 3.1
My ratebeer.com rating: 3.1

Intro: A 305ml pull cap bottle with a best before date of April 2017, poured into a Moonzen teku glass.
Appearance: It poured a wonderful clear golden orange colour with a slightly less than two finger white head that dissipated quickly and left some sparse lacing.
Aroma: On the light side, but there’s sweet malt, biscuit, grass, caramel and a touch of lemon.
Taste: Sweet malt, grain, grass, floral notes, lemon, apple and honey.
Mouthfeel: Medium to light bodied with moderate carbonation.
Overall: If only Suntory made their beers as good as their whiskies… Master’s Dream was easy to drink and was not bad, but at the same time nothing special either.

words of another dreamy traveller