4 - Good (buy), Beer Reviews, Jack’s Abby Brewing, Lager - IPL (India Pale), USA

Jack’s Abby Hoponius Union

Tuesday, 8 September 2015 kitch Leave a comment

Brewery: Jack’s Abby Brewing
Country: USA
ABV: 6.7%
Style: American IPL
Other Notes: 65 IBUs.

Brewer Description: (from bottle) Hoponius Union harmoniously combines lager yeast fermentation and West Coast IPA hops. Our India style Pale Lager is like a traditional IPA but with a twist – it’s fermented cold and aged for extended periods. A blend of classic American hops creates a huge tropical fruit and citrusy hop aroma. A dry finish accentuates the pleasant bitterness and hop profile. Hoponius Union uses locally sourced ingredients.

My rating: 4
My beeradvocate.com rating: 4.16
My ratebeer.com rating: 4

Intro: A 12 fl oz bottle with a manufacturing date of 1st December 2014 and poured into a pint glass (although I’d consider using an IPA glass for this next time).
Appearance: The beer poured a slightly hazy golden orange colour with a less than one finger white head that leaves some spotty lacing.
Aroma: Mainly citrus zest hops followed by some tropical mango and light pepperiness.
Taste: Light caramel malt flavours followed by some nice bitter citrus and grassy hops… orange and piney finish.
Mouthfeel: Crisp and dry, light to medium bodied with medium carbonation.
Overall: I am impressed. The world needs more lagers like this. It is far and away the best lager I’ve tried, and a very good example of what can and should be done with lagers.

2 - Maybe (likely wouldn't buy, might drink), Asahi Breweries Ltd., Beer Reviews, English Pale Ale, Japan

Asahi Craftsmanship Dry Pale Ale

Saturday, 5 September 2015 kitch Leave a comment

Brewery: Asahi Breweries Ltd.
Country: Japan
ABV: 5.5%
Style: English Pale Ale

Brewer Description: Unfortunately words on the can was in Japanese and I can’t read Japanese!

My rating: 2
My beeradvocate.com rating: 2.61
My ratebeer.com rating: 2.5

Intro: A 500ml can with a canned date of March 2015 and poured into a pint glass.
Appearance: The beer poured a clear copper amber colour with a one finger white head that dissipates quickly. Leaves only some light lacing.
Aroma: Starts mainly with sweet and bready malts, some caramel and apple juice with hints of plum, lemon and floral hop.
Taste: Sweet biscuit malt and caramel, bland apple juice, light bitter grassy hops with a hint of lemon.
Mouthfeel: Medium bodied with medium carbonation.
Overall: This was ok, its not terrible or anything, but I’m not sure I’d spend money to buy this again.

1 - Poor (never again), Beer Reviews, Belgian Pale Ale, Belgium, Brouwerij Van Honsebrouck N.V.

Kasteel Hoppy

Friday, 4 September 2015 kitch Leave a comment

Brewery: Brouwerij Van Honsebrouck N.V.
Country: Belgium
ABV: 6.5%
Style: Belgian Pale Ale

Brewer Description: (from bottle) Top fermented beer, contains barley malt.

My rating: 1
My beeradvocate.com rating: 1.92
My ratebeer.com rating: 1.9

Intro: A 330ml bottle with a best before date of November 2015 and poured into a Duvel tulip glass.
Appearance: The beer poured a clear golden colour with a one finger white head that dissipated quickly leaving a very thin soapy layer and some spotty lacing.
Aroma: Starts with caramel malt and fruity orange, lemon before turning grassy, pine and a metallic iron finish.
Taste: Metallic iron overpowers everything else. Other than that though, there is some light caramel malt sweetness at the beginning and then lots of floral and herbal bitterness that lasts long into the aftertaste.
Mouthfeel: Medium bodied with medium carbonation.
Overall: Ughhh, I like hops. But this… It started off all well and good with a nice pour. It actually looked tasty. But then it all went downhill with the aroma first and then even further with the taste. I just really did not enjoy the taste at all. This one was not for me. I don’t even want to categorise this under Belgian Pale Ale…

4 - Good (buy), Beer Reviews, Belgian Witbier, Clown Shoes Beer, USA

Clown Shoes Clementine

Wednesday, 2 September 2015 kitch Leave a comment

Brewery: Clown Shoes Beer
Country: USA
ABV: 6%
Style: Belgian Witbier
Other Notes: Brewed and bottled by Mercury Brewing Co., Ipswich, MA.

Brewer Description: (from bottle) Clementine is a beer conceived in a dream, in the middle of a blistering beatdown of a day. We used clementine essence, sweet orange peel, coriander and summit hops to smack that mean day upside the head with a refreshing clown shoe.

My rating: 4
My beeradvocate.com rating: 3.76
My ratebeer.com rating: 3.7

Intro: A 12 fl oz bottle with a bottled on date of 2nd January 2015 and poured into a pint glass.
Appearance: The beer poured a hazy orangey amber colour with a just over one finger white head that dissipated quite quickly leaving a very thin foamy layer.
Aroma: Strong citrus and sweet orange in the smell with hints of coriander and grass.
Taste: Definitely very orangey with citrus orange, orange peel and mandarin shining through. Hints of coriander and pine then a slight spicy but peppery finish.
Mouthfeel: Light to medium bodied with high carbonation.
Overall: A good witbier that I would probably buy again. Admittedly I was iffy when I smelt the strong orange aromas, as I did not enjoy the other really orangey witbier that I’ve tried. But this was much better and restored my confidence somewhat on orange flavoured beers.

3 - Indifferent (might buy, probably drink), Beer Reviews, Farmhouse Saison, Stillwater Artisanal Ales, USA

Stillwater Stateside Saison

Tuesday, 1 September 2015 kitch Leave a comment

Brewery: Stillwater Artisanal Ales
Country: USA
ABV: 6.8%
Style: Belgian Saison
Other Notes: Brewed at Two Roads Brewing Company, CT, USA.

Brewer Description: (from website) Pays homage to old world tradition while celebrating new world innovation. Naturally brewed with the finest European malts & fresh aromatic hops from the United States & New Zealand. It’s then fermented using a classic farmhouse ale yeast and bottle conditioned to enhance stability. The outcome is a beer of unique design and exquisite taste, showcasing some of the best attributes of modern-day craft brewing.

My rating: 3
My beeradvocate.com rating: 3.52
My ratebeer.com rating: 3.5

Intro: A 12 fl oz bottle that has a bottling date code of 364:14 aka 30th December 2014 and was poured into a Duvel tulip glass.
Appearance: It poured a slightly hazy orange tinted golden colour with a one finger white head that dissipated quickly.
Aroma: Bready malts, quite yeasty, hint of coriander, honey and then some fruity banana, pineapple, apple and lemon to end.
Taste: Starts sweeter than expected but ends with a lasting bitterness. Honey and bubblegum upfront, followed by mild or even weak apple juice, and hints of banana, spicy pepper and lemon zest.
Mouthfeel: Dry, medium bodied with medium carbonation.
Overall: I prefer my saison’s sour whereas this one is hoppy. Having said that, it’s still very refreshing and easy to drink.

words of another dreamy traveller