5 Rabbit 5 Vulture

The label describes it as an Oaxacan-style dark ale brewed with ancho chili. Apparently, in Aztec mythology, 5 vulture is one of the five gods of excess that serve to warn us of our baser instincts. Hmmm. No excess here. I had this on draft at the map room a few months ago and had hoped it had a little more heat. I also remember liking it anyway! So tonight I bought a six pack and I'm not disappointed. I just wish the Chicago brewers had been a little more humble when they entered the market.

Davy Jones Lager

This is an imperial cream ale from Heavy Seas. Tastes a little like the Anderson Valley Summer Solstice, but a little stronger in abv.

Mikkeller, take 2

This is the second IPA that I bought from the single hop series. This one was made with cascade hops. It is 38 ibus, so it's a little more hoppy / bitter than the Mt. Hood. It is closer to what I expected from an IPA. Another enjoyable Mikkeller.

Mt. Hood

I have tried a number of Mikkellers and liked them all. This is from the single hop series - using only Mt. Hood hops. It has an ibu of 33 and the malts balance out the limited hops. I like this a lot.

Brooklyn Brewmaster's Reserve

This is a Brooklyn Main Engine Reserve - an abbey single. I don't know that I have ever had an abbey single, but even if I have, this blows it away! It's a very smooth Belgian with a little kick.

5 Rabbit 5 Lizard

This is a relatively new Chicago brewery. The beer is the Latin style witbier brewed with Spices and passion fruit. Very interesting. Also love the glass.

Summit Red - on cask

A nice copper color with a slightly bitter finish. Like the beer, love the glass - beer is my life.

LakeFront!

This is the Cream Ale - a pale ale. I think this is a nice crisp pale ale with a good mix of bitterness. And right from the brewery!

Black IPA

This beer is from the southern tier of NY, near where I grew up. The brewery has received praise for a number of it's offerings. This is a relatively new ale from Southern Tier. It is a black IPA. I've had a few, a couple of which I thought were awesome. This one is pretty good. At first it tasted like a half and half of an imperial stout and IPA. The second taste convinced me - pretty good, especially for an imperial. Nice hops. Good malt. And a cheap date.

Tramp Stamp

Yep, a beer named after the tattoo I never got. I had seen this in the store a couple times and loved the label. Now I've had it on tap and it is just as good as the label! Nice copper color and bitter nose. Finishes a little sharp but enjoyable.

Make it a double.

Firestone double jack IPA. Nice hoppy taste, which must mask the alcohol because this is yummy. Try it!

Peace.

This is a Goose Island Fleur. It has a great floral nose, copper color and great finish. Better on tap than in a bottle.

Unibroue

This is from Unibroue, but I can't remember the name. I do, however, remember liking it. It had a nice malty taste and copper color (lighter than in the photo). I'll try to update this post with the actual name.

Back at it

The blogging, not the drinking. Of course I have not taken a break from trying new beer. This is Boulevard Smokestack Series Tank 7 farmhouse ale. It's, well, interesting. I think it's the yeast. It starts a little hoppy and finishes a little bitter - for a farmhouse. But it's crisp and light which is nice for a hot and humid day. And in a mason jar at an almost authentic southern BBQ joint. In Bucktown. Close.

Bar Fly IPA

At the Sox game with a Bar Fly IPA. It's nice and hoppy with a crisp and bitter finish. Perfect for a warm summer evening.

Jockamo!

Sitting outside at the French Quarter Festival and having an Abita Jockamo IPA while listening to some awesome blues. Oh yeah, the IPA is good!

Crescent City Brewery

The sampler! Lightest to darkest - A pilsner (tastes like a light lager), a wheat (pretty good - crisp), seasonal - ambrosia (interesting - finishes kind of malty), Munich style ale (black forest - malty and not very hoppy), red stallion (it's their happiest and not that hoppy, but not bad). Gotta love local beer!

Gnomegang

A Belgian trippel that is a collaboration between Ommegang and La Chueffe. It tastes a little heavy, almost syrupy. I'll give it another chance because, well, I have a full glass.

Smallbar Pale Ale

I like this beer very much. This has a nice copper color and a crisp taste, with a mildly hoppy taste. If you want crazy IBUs, this isn't your beer. If you like a smooth and flavorful beer with Moderate hops - this is it. It is brewed by Two Brothers using hops grown at the Fullerton Smallbar location. Yummy. And, when the bartender saw me attempting to take a picture using the candle as light, he turned on the overhead lights for me. Nice. That random act of kindness may have saved my night.

Go east, young man!

Yuengling lager. I never cared much for it when I lived in Philly, perhaps because of its ubiquitous nature. Absence makes the heart grow fonder. This was the best the 7-11 had to offer and it hit the spot.

The best Oberon ever?

Despite the plastic cup, this just might have been my best Oberon to date -- spring training in Florida, shorts, sun, and my Phillies. Top that.

Yep, it's almost St. Patrick's Day

This is a Great Lakes Irish style ale. Or lager. Not sure. For some reason it has a greenish tinge. Not sure why. It has a copper tone and a little bit of a malty finish. The middle is non-descript. In a good way? I'd definitely have another, but it's early and I'm off tomorrow.

Going Rogue

This is a Rogue Shakespeare Stout. I liked it a lot. This stout had a nice malty taste with a thick dark head and a chocolately nose.

I'm not worthy

This is an Arrogant Bastard Ale. The bottle warns that I'm not worthy and they are probably right. I've had this before and remembered liking it a little better. I wanted a little more hoppy flavor and a sharper finish. Or maybe I just wanted a different beer.

Another mixed drink

This is an Aviation, also at the Violet Hour. A friend recommended this drink and it was very good. It's made with gin and has a citrus flavor. If we had stayed longer, I would have had another.

Mixed drink detour

This is a Juliette and Romeo at the Violet Hour. Although their drink menu says it's made with Beefeater, I had mine with Hendrick's, which I think was a good choice because the drink - and the gin - have cucumber in them. The drink was great but get there before eight unless you want to wait.

Two for one

On the left is the pilsner and on the right is the iron fist pale ale. I think the pale ale is my favorite Revolution beer. Or maybe i like the Englishman Working Mild. Either way, it's a close call and there are other local brews I like better.

Village Green

This is the Village Green English Bitter. I think it was on the cask. I expected it to be, well, a little more bitter.

Downhill slide

I first had a Leinenkugel a few years ago and I thought it was pretty good. Back then, it was still a relatively small independent brewery with limited distribution. Then one of the big boys bought them and I think things have gone down hill since then. A "friend" brought three over for a banana pancake breakfast. He got the better end of the deal!

Lost Abbey

This is a Lost Abbey Serpent's Stout. It has a caramely head with a chocolate malty body. Sometimes Lost Abbey is a little much for me, but I liked this stout. It was a little heavy to have two, but it was a great choice to start.

With a rebel yell!

Another beer from the Revolution Party. I think this was a pilsner style lager but I cannot remember what they told me when I bought it. It is a nice refreshing beer - crisp lager taste and a smooth finish. This was a pleasant surprise. In addition to fitting the theme.

Anchors Away

I have never been a big Anchor Steam fan but I bought the Liberty ale for a revolution themed party. I like this much better than the Anchor Steam. But that's just about all I remember about this beer. Next time I'm at a Giants game (some time after they dump Pat B.), I'll Drink a Liberty in honor of the Phillies!

Great Lakes Burning River

I went to Cleveland last summer to meet some friend's for fourth of July weekend. We were really excited about going to Great Lakes Brewery. Unfortunately, everything in Cleveland was closed for the weekend, except the house where A Christmas Story was filmed. Back to the beer.

A friend brought this over to the house for us to try. It's a smooth pale ale and very drinkable. It has a nice copper color and a crisp finish. I enjoyed this beer but I shouldn't be surprised because I also like Dortmunder Gold and Edmund Fitzgerald.

Hoppiness found

I have heard a lot of good things about Grand Teton Brewing so I thought I'd buy this imperial red ale for a friend and then try to steal a sample. Success! This was a hoppy red ale - not quite as bitter as an IPA, and not as alcohol-y as some imperials. I recommend picking up one if you can find it.

(root) beer

Ok, this is neither an ale nor a lager, but it is made by a local brewery. This is a very good root beer. I think it's my favorite Goose Island beverage.

Iron City

The local beer store stocked this for the Super Bowl. I've had it before and not been impressed, but it fit the theme. I wasn't impressed with the Steelers' performance in the big game. In fact, the Iron City was just a little better than their team.

Trippel

This is a Piece Superfluous Trippel. It's a Belgian style ale brewed with Belgian yeast and candy sugar. It doesn't have a strong nose, but it's sort of strong at 9% abv. It finishes, well, with an after-finish. I think I'm coining a new phrase here. It finishes really quickly and crisply, not real sweet like a trippel usually finishes. Then it sits on your tongue for a while as the Belgian sweetness gathers up for a second, more traditional, trippel finish. Worth a try. 

Rogue!

Dead Guy Ale. Hmmm.  Hoppy and bitter. Pretty good. I'm sure you've had this. 

Snowtastrophe!

In honor of the snowstorm of the decade, so far, here is an IPA called Yellow Snow. This was fantastic. A nice balanced IPA that is hoppy, but not too hoppy. My favorite Rogue. So far.

Bitter

This is a Piece bellend bitter. It smells super hoppy, but it tastes very smooth. It's a session ale and surprisingly pleasing at 4% abv.

Beer geek bacon

Yes, you read that right. This is a smoked coffee stout by Mikkeller. It had a definite, but subtle, bacon aroma and a nice malty brown head. This is one of the most interesting and complex ales I've had in a long time. I like Mikkeller, in general, and I thought this was well made, but maybe I'm just not beer geek enough. Don't get me wrong, I enjoyed this and I think I'd have another, just not on the same night!

Oyster stout

I know, it doesn't sound like a stout brewed with oyster juice would be any good. I had heard that this was a match made in heaven. Now I know, it's very good. This is the Marston's Oyster Stout. It's a British stout served on the nitro tap, so it's not overly carbonated. It has a smooth taste with a nice malty overtone. I liked it more than I expected.

Brooklyn black chocolate stout

This is a 10% abv stout. It tastes pretty strong, but not too alcoholly. It has a strong alcohol nose, but tastes very good with the chocolate covered espresso bean.

Summit imperial pumpkin porter

A nice orangish head and a decidedly pumpkin nose. Not as much pumpkin in the taste as in the aroma. A little pumpkin taste and a little spice. I also taste a little tart flavor but can't put my finger on what it is. I wish this had a little more pumpkin to it, but it's good. I've had a few Summits at beer school, and they have all been good.

Stout fest - take two

Winter must be stout season because beer school is having stout / porter night. This is a Bell's Porter. It has a dry finish and a mild mild coffee aftertaste. It is very dark and very drinkable, not as thick as Guinness.

Half Acre

This is a Half Acre Big Hugs. It is 9.5%, but masks it well. It has a huge coffee flavor, like they ground espresso beans into the keg before they capped it. It is quite yummy. Sip it and it will warm you from the inside.

World Wide Stout

This is Dogfish Head World Wide Stout. It is 18% abv. Wow. The nose is very floral and it smells more like a tripel. It does not taste like a high octane beer (unlike the dfh 120 minute IPA, which is 22% abv and, sadly, which is not available now because they brewed a bad batch). This is dangerous. Love it.

Stoutfest

Quenchers is having stoutfest. They have a wide selection of stouts, mostly high octane. Very good.

Intelligent!

This is the Three Floyds Hell's Black Intelligenser stout. This is smooth. And I don't even like coffee. Go out and get one. Pronto.

Smooth malt and gentle coffee taste. Lingers on your palette without crushing it and is a nice 6%.

Summit oatmeal stout

What a difference between an imperial stout and a session stout. This starts like the Dark Horse but finishes smoother without the alcohol burn and has a nice malty finish. Very good. This is the second Summit that I really liked.