Lord Hobo Boom Sauce NE IPA Jan. 1, 2019
A brewery better be ready to back up a name like Boom Sauce. Luckily, Lord Hobo is up to the task (for the record, great brewery name). Drier than most NE IPAs, Boom Sauce has a rush of herbal and hop dryness that really catches me. It strikes a better balance between the juicy character and the resiny, herbal hops that on the finish grow strong but not overpowering. At nearly 8 percent ABV, Boom Sauce holds its hop strength longer than a lighter IPA could manage. With all these IPA classifications, there’s room for an IPA to dare the drinker to define it. Boom Sauce touts NE IPA as its style, but it plants roots in any number of IPA iterations.
Lawsons Finest Liquids Ray of Sunshine IPA
Jan. 3, 2019
Finally, the legendary Lawsons, which was a backyard brewery when I last visited Vermont. They tout this as a tropical IPA. Lowercase tropical – better to leave the style at IPA and let this Lawsons brew work some magic. The magic doesn’t hide long, not after a deep whiff of citrus tinged with hop nuggets. Orange, mango, tangerine, a finger of papaya or pear flesh – there’s a lot here and then a bitter hoppy strike at the end. There’s a thickness on the finish that at times resembles the pulp of mandarin oranges. It’s unexpected but wholly welcomed. On other passes, there’s a bitter fist of grapefruit. Ray of Sunshine’s 8 percent ABV hides well behind all those flavors. I only wish this can didn’t leave me craving more samples from the Vermont brewery.
Hop Hands American Pale Ale
Jan. 6 2019
The line between American pale ale and IPA is often impossible to spot. Tired Hands lands Hop Hands in the APA category by going for balance and drinkability over bruising hop-forward flavor. This specimen is hopped generously with Simcoe, Centennial and Amarillo. While that seems a pretty traditional Pacific Northwest IPA blend, Tired Hands pulls some intense aromatics from these hops, creating a nose you can smell across the room. It isn’t too intense or off-putting, just balanced and strong. There’s a tug of war among the grapefruit, orange and lemon zest notes that are showcased here. None of them dominate, which is a good thing. While cloudy and hazy like a New England-style IPA, these hops have a punchiness that emerges after a few passes. Just a month old, Hop Hands speaks to the need to taste hoppy beers as soon as possible. A month from now, I fear these assertive, sticky and herbal hops might see their presence somewhat reduced.Milkstave IPA
Jan. 6, 2019
Beer style names get longer all the time. Milkstave IPA is an oated, Citra and Mosaic IPA dosed with lactose then fermented in an oak foeder with a yeast blend and puree of pineapple and guava (whew). For all that goes into its creation, Milkstave lands on the brilliant end of the beer creativity spectrum. The hops and the fruits blend with the souring bacteria effortlessly. The fruit edges out the the Citra and Mosaic – those two fruits pair too well with the sour flavor. The guava really pops out and there’s hop backbone but it does not asset itself separately. Whatever the case, the flavor combination, driven by the pineapple and guava, is exquisite. Whatever style you want to slap on it, Milkstave IPA is a behemoth.
Straffe Hendrik Bruges Tripel AleJanuary 17, 2019
Too often Tripel is just Belgian golden ale at a higher alcohol level and overloaded with coriander. Not this beauty. Big orange, with lots of spice (pick which one you want) and not a drop tastes like 9 percent ABV. Between the bitter orange and apricot lies a lot of lemon and other citrus. Almost no hint of alcohol, making it perfect for what Tripel does best. Lots of pale malts and influence from the Belgian yeast produces some sharp esters that I find delightful. Bruges has become more of a beer focus than in the past, and this Tripel is exquisite. Too often American attempts fall prey to the same problems. This does not. It’s orange, brilliant and never gives away its dangerous features lurking beneath the surface.
Ballast Point Barrel-Aged Victory at Sea (2018 High West edition)
Jan. 19, 2019
It’s all barrel and prunes right out of the bottle, a good thing for a 12 percent porter. Barrel influence is strong but augments flavors like the vanilla beans – their presence might slip away without the whiskey barrel. This porter does not hint at its strength (thank goodness for the 12 oz. size)). The vanilla and coffee impart a creamy richness mid-palate that elevates this porter. This still retains its porter character – it’s a dark, roasted beer but never feels heavy. The coffee grows more prominent as it warms in the glass. Beer this big should not drink so easy. What a rare beer, well worth pursuing.
Thirsty Dog Bernese (2014 edition)
Jan. 27, 2019
I found a few bottles of this barleywine favorite hiding my 12-oz. cellaring box. With cold nights ahead, I could not hold back. This specimen drinks incredibly well after five years in the dark. Bottom of the bottle is opaque from sediment. Very dry on the first pass, but there is a big patch of booziness that arrives soon and stays late. Smooth, so smooth, Bernese finishes with a nice collaboration of dark fruits and a little nuttiness, with dates the dominate flavor. There’s a vein of mild citrus, nothing punchy like ?hops, but a pleasant bit of orange. A model barleywine, not a baseline, but Bernese is what other barleywines should aim for.
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| Bernese and a Bigfoot I did not review |
Feb. 7, 2019
Raisin, plum and date – any hoppy traces representing American barleywine are long gone after the Craft Brewers Conference. But it’s barrel-aged barleywine from Jackie O’s in Nashville, and I cannot deny this sampling. After a few sips, Bonneville tastes similar to a tawny port, with a big profile of alcohol and brown fruits. It’s not easy drinking, but a good sipper for a night when you’ve had nothing else. Bonneville has a presence worthy of a cold night when the belly needs warmth. Even in small pours, this barleywine is powerful. My mini-goblet has been through two pours but for my tastes, it is too raisiny. I expect more flavors to emerge but the booziness and the raisin/pruniness dominate. So there’s that.
Land Grant Deep Search Baltic Porter
February 25, 2019
The Life Aquatic references run heavy on this can, with the Belafonte, Zissou’s submersible and the jaguar shark displayed prominently. A canned Baltic porter is worth rejoicing – an underproduced style, here the big, roasted character gets its due. There’s a big push of roasted character – coffee (maybe espresso?), nuts, chocolate, a little toffee. There’s a viscous sweetness near the finish, rounding out the tsunami of roasted character. Baltic porters come around too rarely. This one should be more than a seasonal effort from Land Grant. This is a majestic winter beer, sure to brighten the taste buds on cold evenings.
Founders Blushing Monk
Feb. 27, 2019
Founders took their excellent raspberry ale, Rubaeus, and crafted a Belgian version. Just adding Belgian yeast sends this beer to some new dimensions. Blushing Monk remains as sweet as its sibling beer – nothing with that much raspberry has a prayer of being dry. As with Rubaeus, at time the flavor is so intense the beer almost feels chewy, as if the raspberry puree had not been filtered out. There’s a strong Belgian ale hiding under that fruit and aside from a few hints of the ester quality of the yeast, it stays hidden pretty well.
Feb. 28, 2019
After a year of bottle conditioning, the hops are long gone, but the ale that remains is exquisite. All sorts of citrus and tropical fruits rise from the body, along with the combined might of lactobacillus, brettanomyces and saison yeast. This is a steel thank concoction that runs strong against anything barrel aged. The brett is not obnoxious, muted and complementary. Good to the final pour from a 750 mL bottle.
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