Tag Archives: usa

5 - Excellent (must buy), Beer Reviews, Epic Brewing Company, Stout - Imperial, USA

Epic Big Bad Baptist

Tuesday, 14 July 2015 kitch Leave a comment

Brewery: Epic Brewing Company
Country: USA
ABV: 11.4%
Style: American Imperial Stout
Other Notes: Malt – Maris Otter Malt, 2-Row Brewer Malt, Crystal, Light Munich Malt T1, 2-Row chocolate malt, 2-row black malt, roasted barley. Spices – Caffe Ibis and Cocoa Nibs.

Brewer Description: (from website) One Big Bad Imperial Stout with Cocoa nibs and Coffee beans. Each season’s release uses a different dark roasted coffee.

My rating: 5
My beeradvocate.com rating: 4.56
My ratebeer.com rating: 4.5

Intro: A 22oz bomber from release batch #46 with a brew date of 24th September 2013 and a packaged date of 8th December 2014 and poured into a snifter glass.
Appearance: The beer poured an opaque black colour with a one finger brown head that dissipated fairly quickly leaving a thin whispy layer and spotty lacing.
Aroma: Strong aromas of chocolate mixed in with coffee, caramel and vanilla. There is also a hint of whisky alcohol aroma.
Taste: Taste is much like the aroma. Chocolate and espresso coffee dominate followed by hints of slightly burnt caramel and vanilla. There is also some roasted malts and oakiness but not a lot of whisky even though its aged in whiskey barrels.
Mouthfeel: Full bodied, light carbonation, smooth.
Overall: I’m a sucker for coffee, whisky and beer (my three favourite drinks). Now put together into a single drink, although the whisky is not so prominent here, this brew is fantastic. It’s right up there with Founders Breakfast Stout and Evil Twin Imperial Biscotti Break. Another must buy beer to add to my list.

3 - Indifferent (might buy, probably drink), Beer Reviews, Farmhouse Saison, Sierra Nevada Brewing Company, USA

Sierra Nevada Ovila Abbey Saison – Mandarin Oranges and Peppercorns

Saturday, 11 July 2015 kitch Leave a comment

Brewery: Sierra Nevada Brewing Company
Country: USA
ABV: 7.5%
Style: Belgian Saison
Other Notes: 24 IBUs. Specialty Ovila series brewed in collaboration with the monks of the Abbey of New Clairvaux in Vina, CA.

Brewer Description: (from bottle) An homage to the monks’ noble work, this unique farmhouse ale is incredibly complex with notes of lemon, pepper, straw and herbs balanced by the tang of Mandarin oranges and a spicy kick of pepper. The Mandarin oranges used to make this beer were locally grown, including a portion grown on the grounds of the Abbey of New Clairvaux and picked by hand by the community of monks living there. We hope you enjoy this collaboration ale.

My rating: 3
My beeradvocate.com rating: 3.7
My ratebeer.com rating: 3.6

Intro: A 12.7 fl oz corked and caged bottle packaged on 5th February 2015 and poured into a Duvel tulip glass.
Appearance: The beer poured a clear orangey copper colour with a one finger white head that slowly dissipates resulting in a thin soapy layer and stringy lacing.
Aroma: Orange and honey aromas, some Belgian yeasty notes and ginger.
Taste: Sweeter than I expected but not too sweet which is good. I get citrus orange and lemon upfront followed by honey and caramel. There is some spice in the finish.
Mouthfeel: Medium bodied, medium to high carbonation, dryness.
Overall: Of the SN Ovila series that I’ve tried before (the other two being the Tripel and Quad w/ plums), this was the best one. Its unlike the other saisons that I’ve tried, but still a solid beer.

5 - Excellent (must buy), Beer Reviews, Crooked Stave Artisan Beer Project, Farmhouse Saison, USA

Crooked Stave Surette Provision Saison

Wednesday, 1 July 2015 kitch Leave a comment

Brewery: Crooked Stave Artisan Beer Project
Country: USA
ABV: 6.2%
Style: Saison
Other Notes: Aged in oak barrels.

Brewer Description: (from bottle) Surette is a provision Saison with a tart and vinous character from extended barrel aging.

My rating: 5
My beeradvocate.com rating: 4.53
My ratebeer.com rating: 4.4

Intro: A 375ml bottle from 2014/batch 15 poured into a Duvel tulip glass.
Appearance: Poured a slightly hazy golden orange colour with a thin head that dissipates quickly but leaves nice lacing.
Aroma: Strong barnyard funk, slight tropical fruit pineapple, maybe mango and slight citrus tangy tangerine.
Taste: Excellent tart and sour tastes. Light lemon citrus along with some even lighter tropical mango and yeasty notes to balance.
Mouthfeel: Medium bodied, low to medium carbonation.
Overall: This was excellent, a definite must buy for me. Loved the upfront tart and sourness in the beer. Up to par with its Belgian counterparts for this style in my opinion, but probably harder to find in Hong Kong. I want more!

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

Sierra Nevada Hoptimum

Monday, 29 June 2015 kitch Leave a comment

Brewery: Sierra Nevada Brewing Company
Country: USA
ABV: 10.4%
Style: American Double IPA
Other Notes: 100 IBUs, yeast (Ale yeast), hops (German Magnum, Chinook, Simcoe, plus an experimental variety), malts (Two-row Pale, Munich, Wheat)

Brewer Description: (from bottle) Hoptimum is the biggest whole-cone IPA we have ever produced – a 100 IBU, whole-cone hurricane of flavor. Aggressively hopped, dry hopped AND torpedoed, Hoptimum delivers ultra-intense flavors to hop fanatics everywhere.

My rating: 4
My beeradvocate.com rating: 3.93
My ratebeer.com rating: 3.9

Intro: A 12 fl oz bottle packaged on 10th April 2015 and poured into a Duvel tulip glass.
Appearance: Poured a clear copper colour with a one and a half finger white head that slowly dissipates into a thin foamy layer that lasts throughout.
Aroma: Strong piney hops and a light citrus grapefruit aroma. There is also some caramel malts.
Taste: Mainly pine hops and grapefruit citrus flavours along with some slight caramel malt which is sweet and sticky. There is also some alcoholic booze aftertaste.
Mouthfeel: Full bodied, medium carbonation, creamy and sticky.
Overall: I really liked this beer and its hoppiness. It’s very close to a must buy for me. I think the two things that hold it back for me are that the caramelly flavours make it a bit too sweet and the booziness that comes through towards the end is stronger than I would have liked it. But having said that, I would buy more from time to time.

3 - Indifferent (might buy, probably drink), Beer Reviews, Sierra Nevada Brewing Company, Stout, USA

Sierra Nevada Coffee Stout

Thursday, 25 June 2015 kitch Leave a comment

Brewery: Sierra Nevada Brewing Company
Country: USA
ABV: 6.2%
Style: American Stout
Other Notes: 53 IBUs

Brewer Description: (from bottle) A cup of joe and a bold beer can thwart the winter cold, so we blended them for the ultimate warmer. Our Coffee Stout is a fusion of dark roasted malts and rich, cold-brewed coffee for layers of bittersweet, fruity, dark chocolate and caramel-like flavors.

My rating: 3
My beeradvocate.com rating: 3.71
My ratebeer.com rating: 3.8

Intro: A 12 fl oz bottle with a packaged date of 28th October 2014, and poured into a snifter glass.
Appearance: The beer poured opaque black with a nice one finger light mocha coloured head that dissipated in about 2 minutes leaving nice spotty lacing.
Aroma: Strong vanilla aromas with dark chocolate, roasted malts and coffee.
Taste: Dark bittersweet chocolate, roasted malts, coffee and some light caramel.
Mouthfeel: Medium bodied, mild but prickly carbonation, creamy and smooth.
Overall: This was less than 8 months old but I’m thinking the coffee in it may already be less pronounced. The problem is that it’s not that easy for me to find it fresh in Hong Kong. It doesn’t have the crisp fresh coffee bean bite like that of Founders Breakfast Stout that I really enjoy. Having said that, if I could find it again (fresher of course) then I would be sure to give it another shot.

words of another dreamy traveller