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

Pipeworks Lil Citra

Friday, 7 October 2016 kitch Leave a comment

Brewery: Pipeworks Brewing Company
Country: USA
ABV: 4.9%
Style: American IPA

Brewer Description: Not much information on their website or on the can. Just based on the name and what I tasted, I would venture a guess that this was single hop Citra.

My rating: 4
My beeradvocate.com rating: 4.49
My ratebeer.com rating: 4.4

Intro: A 1 pint can canned sometime in 2016 with the all important month date cut off the lip of the bottom of the can. Poured into a Spiegelau IPA glass.
Appearance: It poured a hazy golden orange colour with a big three finger white head that had great retention and left lots of nice lacing.
Aroma: Strong tropical and citrus fruits. Mango, peach, orange, orange pith and a touch of lemon.
Taste: Tropical pineapple juice with light peach and mango at the beginning, is then followed by lightly bitter citrusy orange pith and lemon zest.
Mouthfeel: Crisp, dry, light bodied with moderate to high carbonation.
Overall: A great Session IPA. Extremely drinkable especially on a hot summers day. Full of tropical and citrus fruit. Could very well be my go to Session IPA.

3 - Indifferent (might buy, probably drink), Beer Reviews, Clan Brewing Company, Herbed / Spiced Beer, Scotland

Clan Brewing Spruce Ale

Wednesday, 5 October 2016 kitch Leave a comment

Brewery: Clan Brewing Company
Country: Scotland
ABV: 8%
Style: Herbed / Spiced Beer
Other Notes: Matured in Islay whisky casks

Brewer Description: (from website) A classic combination of two traditional methods of creating uniquely Scottish liquids: smoky peat on a sweet, resinous full body. Smoky, fruity, intense, full-bodied. Aged in Islay whisky casks for an absurdly long time. The perfect drinking occasion is to share these complex craft brews with good friends.

My rating: 3
My beeradvocate.com rating: 3.36
My ratebeer.com rating: 3.1

Intro: A 330ml bottle with a best before date of end of February 2019 and poured into a d’Achouffe tulip glass.
Appearance: It poured a nice clear amber copper colour with a half finger white head that disappears almost immediately while leaving only very sparse lacing.
Aroma: Strong peat with maybe a touch of whisky, caramel, leafy and grass.
Taste: Sweet fruitiness that is mostly apple, medicinal peat and smoky wood.
Mouthfeel: Medium bodied with low to moderate carbonation.
Overall: The peat from the Islay whisky casks is obviously there and I like it. But after that, the taste is overly sweet which I’m quite particular with.

3 - Indifferent (might buy, probably drink), Beer Reviews, Belgian Witbier, Belgium, Brouwerij Timmermans-John Martin N.V.

Timmermans Tradition Blanche Lambicus

Wednesday, 5 October 2016 kitch Leave a comment

Brewery: Brouwerij Timmermans-John Martin N.V.
Country: Belgium
ABV: 4.5%
Style: Belgian Witbier

Brewer Description: (from website) There is no other beer like Timmermans Tradition Blanche Lambicus anywhere in the world because it is the only white lambic beer. By adding spices such as coriander and dried orange zest, a light, fruity beer is created. It is subtly spicy and deliberately made cloudy. Should ideally be drunk from an authentic stoneware pot.

My rating: 3
My beeradvocate.com rating: 3.71
My ratebeer.com rating: 3.6

Intro: A 375ml corked and caged bottle with a cork date of 2015 and best before date of 10th May 2017. Poured into a d’Achouffe tulip glass.
Appearance: It poured a cloudy golden yellow colour with a two finger bubbly white head that dissipated quickly but left great lacing.
Aroma: Lightly funky, candy sweetness, orange, orange peel, lemon and hints of mango and pineapple.
Taste: Orange peel and honey sweetness is surrounded by a touch of lemon, light sourness and light funkiness.
Mouthfeel: Crisp, light bodied with moderate to high carbonation.
Overall: It’s overly sweet in my opinion, but has a nice aroma. The taste is actually fine but I would have preferred it if the sweetness was toned down or even soured.

4 - Good (buy), Beer Reviews, Farmhouse Saison, Prairie Artisan Ales, USA

Prairie Eliza5beth

Tuesday, 4 October 2016 kitch Leave a comment

Brewery: Prairie Artisan Ales
Country: USA
ABV: 8%
Style: Belgian Saison
Other Notes: 25 IBUs. Midwest farmhouse ale. Brewed and bottled by Krebs Brewing Co., Krebs, Oklahoma

Brewer Description: (from website) Eliza5beth is a golden farmhouse ale that we aged on apricots to allow sourness and light fruit flavors to add complexity to the beer.

My rating: 4
My beeradvocate.com rating: 4.22
My ratebeer.com rating: 4.1

Intro: A 16.9 fl oz (500ml) bottle with a Julian bottled on date of 08515, meaning it was bottled on 26th March 2015. Perhaps opened a few months later than I would have preferred. Poured into a Cantillon ballon glass.
Appearance: It poured a hazy golden orange colour with a big foamy three finger white head that dissipates fairly quickly to an extremely thin cap while leaving nice lacing.
Aroma: Tart, funky, wet hay, lemon juice and apricot.
Taste: Tart, lightly sour, straw, lemon, orange and apricot with some peppery spiciness towards the end.
Mouthfeel: Crisp, medium bodied with high prickly carbonation.
Overall: Although I didn’t intend to hold on to this for so long, 18 months in the bottle and it still holds up pretty nicely. Good tart and fruity flavors along with great carbonation.

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

Stone Enjoy After 07.04.16 Brett IPA

Monday, 3 October 2016 kitch Leave a comment

Brewery: Stone Brewing Co.
Country: USA
ABV: 7%
Style: American IPA
Other Notes: 4th Edition. Recommend aging until 07.04.16

Brewer Description: (from bottle) Really? Cellar an IPA? Yes. What you hold in your hands is an experiement. This IPA is spiked at bottling with Brettanomyces, a wild yeast that, over time, brings about charmingly unpredictable complexities of spice, funk, acidity and more. The operative words in our beer-cellaring thesis are “over time.” For those of you who are impatient or like to experiment, the earliest we recommend sampling this beer is 07.04.15. The beer won’t be fully carbonated until that date. Ideally, you’ll want to cellar the beer up to – or beyond – the Enjoy After date to help it reach its full evolutionary potential. At that point, some facets of the Brett characteristics will have mellowed, while others will have become more profound, it all matures into a fascinating and delicious culmination. Individual results will vary… and that’s both the beauty and the intent behind this beer.

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

Intro: A 1 pint 9.36 fl oz (750ml) corked and caged bottle with an enjoy after 4th July 2016 date, and poured into a Spiegelau IPA glass. As soon as I uncaged it, the cork pretty much wanted to pop itself out.
Appearance: It poured a slightly hazy golden orange colour with a huge four finger fluffy white head that just kept going and going but somehow eventually settles to a pillow-y cap and left lots of lacing.
Aroma: Moderate brett, leathery, barnyard funk with tropical fruitiness and pine in the background.
Taste: Earthy funkiness followed by fruity lemon and pineapple, pepper spice, pine and bitterness on the finish.
Mouthfeel: Medium bodied with moderate carbonation which was surprising since it looked like it was going to be highly carbonated.
Overall: Other than the bitterness on the finish, and maybe the pine, there really wasn’t much IPA feel left. Maybe a Saison, but at the same time not a spectacular one. It’s ok, I’ll still drink more, but I’m on the fence as to whether I’d get another bottle. I’m glad I tried it though.

words of another dreamy traveller