Tales of ales from the heart of Ohio to the ends of the Earth
One can make a good argument that the sour beers of Belgium—Flanders reds, oud bruins, lambics—are the most sophisticated expressions of what can be accomplished by fermenting grains. While Flanders reds and oud bruins lack the romantic allure of spontaneous fermentation used to produce lambics, they make up for it with a more substantial malt character and a curious combination of sweet and sour.
Time for another blind taste test, this one focused on double/imperial IPAs. American craft beer lovers are crazy about hops, and the double IPA style is an ode to the glory of the humulus lupulus plant like no other. Although DIPAs are released throughout the year, they seem to peak in mid to late winter... Continue Reading →
It's been eons since I posted the last installment of my Ohio vs the World series, a sporadic feature where we see how local favorites stack up against highly respected competitors from all corners of the globe in a blind taste test. In case you have forgotten the score, and who could blame you after a 20 month hiatus, the... Continue Reading →
Given the hot weather we’ve been experiencing it may not feel like fall is upon us, but once football season kicks off it can’t be long until the leaves start changing color. If the deluge of pumpkin beers invading the shelves has you cursing fall beers as an egregious affront to the Rineheitsgebot don’t despair,... Continue Reading →
After a longer than anticipated hiatus it's time for round two in my Ohio vs the World series. For those of you who missed the initial post, this series is all about putting the best beers in Ohio up against highly regarded beers from other parts of the world in a blind taste test format. Round... Continue Reading →
Do you ever wonder how your favorite local beer stacks up against the most sought after beers in the land? Is Massive Malt Assault by Local Boyz Brewing really as good as Founders Breakfast Stout? It's hard to know for sure because on the one extreme we can all be guilty of a little nepotism... Continue Reading →
It’s time for another Pat’s Pints blind taste test, and what better style for surviving the cold days of winter than an Imperial Stout. This style originated in 18th century England and was given the moniker Russian Imperial Stout because it was brewed with an unusually high amount of malts, alcohol, and hops to weather... Continue Reading →
My Monday post on the final round of the King of Ohio IPA challenge generated quite a bit of activity in the various social media platforms. Brewmaster Trevor Williams seems to be well liked by everyone who has interacted with him and I’m not surprised. He is working hard to build up Hoof Hearted, brewing... Continue Reading →
At long last we’ve reached the conclusion of the King of Ohio IPA contest. Nearly 70 beers from every corner of the Buckeye state started off with a chance to win the title. Through a series of reader’s polls (over 4400 votes were cast), blogger picks, and one blind taste test, that number was narrowed... Continue Reading →
As announced last week on this blog I’m participating in a collaboration with five other beer bloggers to identify the best Ohio-brewed IPA, and bestow the crown King of Ohio IPAs. Each blogger is tasked with identifying three beers to represent their part of the state in a showdown that will be held on November 1... Continue Reading →
We’re back with another round of blind taste testing. This time we’re tackling a relatively new but increasingly popular style of beer, the Black IPA. As was the case with our American Robust Porter blind tasting, my friend Mark Richards organized and hosted this event in his basement on a snowy Saturday in mid-March. Over... Continue Reading →
Here at Pat’s Pints we do our best to describe, compare, and contrast beers that fall under the same style category. In December we surveyed various holiday beers. Much of January was spent drinking and writing about Belgian Quadrupel Ales. In this post and its follow up we profile a historically important, but underappreciated style,... Continue Reading →
This is the moment you’ve all been waiting for. We reveal the final results of Quadrophilia and award the title, “King of the Quads”. The video below gives you all of the information you need delivered in video form by three happy judges who have been drinking some of the best 10-11% abv beers in... Continue Reading →
After two preliminary rounds our quest to identify the best Quadrupel Ale in the world has reached the final stage. The final round will be presented in two parts: this post where we meet the finalists, and the follow up where the results are revealed. For the visual/audio learners out there I’ve captured a video... Continue Reading →
We start the contest off with quads brewed on this side of the pond. The truth is that it was not that easy to find beers to fill up this side of the bracket. Not too many American breweries make a quad. Firstly, to brew Belgian-style beers a brewery needs to develop the right strains... Continue Reading →
The cold days of winter are an ideal time for sipping strong, dark, hearty beers that warm you from the inside out. Strong malt-forward beers come in several different styles including Imperial Stouts, Barleywines, Doppelbocks and Old Ales, but one of the most interesting families of strong beers are the Quadrupel Ales (quads) that originated... Continue Reading →
At last we've come to the final round with Michigan clinging to a 1 point lead. Ohio needs to win in this round to even things up, any other result and Michigan wins. In this final round we have two bourbon barrel aged Scotch Ales. Wulver by Thirsty Dog (Akron, OH) – Thirsty Dog is... Continue Reading →
Still digesting Thanksgiving dinner? Nothing like a double hopped IPA to wash away the Pumpkin pie from your palate and shake you out your tryptophan induced slumber. In this round we pair up two variations on the basic IPA style, a double IPA against a wet hopped IPA. Bodhi by Columbus Brewing Co. (Columbus, OH)... Continue Reading →
In round two we pit two variations on the Belgian Farmhouse Ale style against each other. Let’s start by meeting the contestants. Saison by Rockmill Brewery (Lancaster, OH) – Rockmill is a small brewery located in Lancaster, OH that makes Belgian style ales from organically grown ingredients. In a recent state-by-state guide to craft beer... Continue Reading →
In the opening round we start with two easy drinking Amber Ales. Let’s start by meeting the contestants. Bleeding Buckeye by Elevator Brewing (Columbus, OH) – We start with the most natural beer to represent Ohio State Football—Bleeding Buckeye by Elevator Brewing here in Columbus. Elevator Brewing is located in downtown Columbus in a beautiful... Continue Reading →
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