Tales of ales from the heart of Ohio to the ends of the Earth
Many foods and drinks are acquired tastes. Think back to the first time you tried coffee, gin, rhubarb, bleu cheese, single malt whisky, grapefruit, ... What did you think? Chances are you didn’t like it very much. Maybe you still don’t, but over time many people come to enjoy, even crave, one or more of... Continue Reading →
This is (probably) the last pumpkin beer I’m going to review for the season. I’ve saved what promises to be a good one for last, Frog’s Hollow Double Pumpkin Ale by Hoppin’ Frog Brewery in Akron. This beer took home a gold medal from the Great American Beer Festival in 2011 and finished #3 in... Continue Reading →
One of the things that beer geeks pay attention to are special releases of highly sought after beers. There are various styles of beer that are released seasonally, like pumpkin beers or Christmas beers, but here I’m talking about something at an entirely different level. There are some beers that once they hit the... Continue Reading →
Dear Slats, I want to drink good beer, but when I get into the beer aisle there are so many choices it’s hard to choose a good one. Either I buy the same old thing (Blue Moon) or I end up gravitating to the beers that have the most eye catching labels or the coolest... Continue Reading →
Beer: Marriage Parfait Brewery: Boon Brewery (Belgium) Style: Geuze (8.0% ABV) Rating: 7.5 Price: $6.99 for a 13 oz bottle Notes: I’m working on a future piece on sour beers, which is a style that is less familiar to me than many others. So for the sake of research I decided I better update my knowledge... Continue Reading →
Fatheads makes great IPAs. That fact and the cool label were too much to pass up when I saw Spooky Tooth in the beer aisle a couple of weeks back. So I decided to pick up a 4-pack and include it in my profile of pumpkin beers for Halloween. Vitals Brewery: Fatheads Brewing (OH) Style:... Continue Reading →
Beer: Anti Hero IPA Brewery: Revolution Brewing (IL) Style: American IPA (6.5% ABV) Rating: 7.25 Price: $9.99 per 6 pack Notes: I’ve got a couple of cans of Anti Hero IPA left over from the IPA blind taste test challenge, where it went down in Round 1 to the eventual champion, White Rajah. So I... Continue Reading →
Beer: MO Brewery: Maine Brewing (ME) Style: American Pale Ale (6.0% ABV) Rating: 8.5 Price: ? Notes: I’m kicking back on a Saturday night watching the ALCS and getting ready to watch the Oregon State – California game. It’s a great time to try a new beer for the first time, and I’ve got one... Continue Reading →
Boulevard beers have officially arrived in Ohio. Based out of Kansas City, Boulevard was purchased by Belgium's Duvel Moortgat in the fall of 2013. Duvel also owns Brewery Ommegang in Cooperstown, New York, and the combined sales of Boulevard and Ommegang make Duvel the 8th largest craft brewery operation in the US. When the acquisition happened... Continue Reading →
Beer: Surette Provisional Saison Brewery: Crooked Stave (CO) Style: Saison (6.2% ABV) Rating: 6 (on a 1-10 scale) Price: $4.99 for a 12 oz bottle Notes: I’m reviewing another American made Saison tonight. This one, Surette Provisional Saison, is brewed by Crooked Stave out of Denver, CO. They are best known for Belgian style wild ales. The Brewery... Continue Reading →
The winners of the recently concluded Great American Beer Festival can now be found online. The following link will take you to a PDF file that has the gold, silver and bronze medals for each of 84 different style categories (American Style Wheat Beers to Barleywines).PDF List: http://www.greatamericanbeerfestival.com/wp-content/uploads/13_GABF_winners.pdfThe next link will take you to a... Continue Reading →
Most types of beer are better fresh, and freshness is particularly important for the hoppy American style IPAs and double IPAs. Sometimes over just a few months the acids that come from the hops start to break down changing the flavor profile of the beer (usually for the worst). When shopping for beers for the... Continue Reading →
This is the sixth and final video in the IPA Blind Taste Test Challenge. In this video the identities of the contestants are revealed to the judges, and the foundations of Amy's beer universe crumble in front of the camera. If you only watch one video in this series this is the one.
This is the fifth of six videos capturing the final round of the IPA blind taste test challenge (I recommend watching them in order). In this video Amy and I review contender #4, White Rajah by The Brew Kettle. As you will see this beer makes a strong impression.
This is the fourth of six videos capturing the final round of the IPA blind taste test challenge (I recommend watching them in order). In this video Amy and I review contender #3, Mystic Mama by Jackie O's.
This is the third of six videos capturing the final round of the IPA blind taste test challenge (I recommend watching them in order). In this video Amy and I review contender #2, Flower Power by Ithaca Brewing, Amy's all-time favorite beer. Her review is not to be missed.
This is the second of six videos capturing the final round of the IPA blind taste test challenge (I recommend watching them in order). In this video Amy and I review contender #1, Stone Enjoy by 11-12-13. As you'll see we were both impressed by this beer, but we were a little confused about which... Continue Reading →
This is the first of six videos that make up the final round of the IPA Blind Taste Test Challenge. The winners of Rounds 1 and 2, The White Rajah by the Brew Kettle and Mystic Mama by Jackie O's, are joined by two beers that were seeded into the final round: Flower Power by... Continue Reading →
Welcome to round 2 of the IPA Blind Taste Test challenge. For today’s round we had envisioned a showdown between some iconic west coast IPAs, but we had to modify the plan a little based on the difficulty in finding fresh beer here in Columbus. We planned to have Sculpin IPA in the mix, but... Continue Reading →
Our friends Amy and Kim from Syracuse, both of whom are certified hopheads, are visiting Columbus over the Columbus Day weekend. So it seemed the stars were aligned to carry out this blog’s inaugural blind taste test where we aim to identify the best beers without the biases of rarity, price, reputation, etc. This first taste... Continue Reading →
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