74. New Holland – Mad Hatter IPA Draft
We were out and about and decided to treat the kids and ourselves by hitting a local pizza joint named Lucca Grill. We had the A la Baldini pizza, which was awesome as always, but we were also able to enjoy a couple of the good beers they had on tap. I had the Mad Hatter IPA on draft, and my wife had the Schlafly Raspberry Hefeweisen (review on that one coming shortly, as my wife made us go buy a 6-pack after enjoying the one on...
73. Anderson Valley Brewing – Boont Amber Ale
A few months ago, the topic of our homebrew club meeting was amber ales. The presenter brought in a few examples, but the one that seemed to impress me the most was the Boont Amber Ale by Anderson Valley Brewing. However, he said that he could only find this beer up near Chicago, and nowhere downstate Illinois. So, when I went into one of the local liquor stores and saw this in the “you pick 6” section, I was really...
72. New Holland – Pilgrims Dole Wheat Wine Draft
We had our monthly homebrew club meeting and I was presenting on the topic of fruit beers, so before I had to present, I thought I’d grab something a little strong to relax a bit. The board at Medici in Normal (seen in the upper left of the pic) indicated that the New Holland Pigrimx Dole Wheat Wine was a high alcohol beer and served in a goblet… So that’s what I went for. It had a hazy brown color, and had almost no...
71. Boulevard Brewing – Pale Ale Draft
We were are Lil Rizzo’s down at the Lake of the Ozarks for my grandma’s 80th birthday party. My first beer was an Anchor Steam, and for my second beer, I went with the Boulevard Pale Ale. I figured we were close enough to the Kansas City brewery that it had a good possibility that it would be fresh and hoppy. When it arrived, it had a nice amber color and was very clear. It had a thin creamy head, but there did appear...
70. Anchor Brewing – Anchor Steam Draft
We went to the Lake of the Ozarks this weekend to attend a surprise party for my grandma’s 80th birthday. We went to dinner at Lil Rizzo’s and I tried to get something different, so I thought I’d try the Anchor Steam on draft. It was clear and copper colored, and had a very thin head on it when it arrived. The aroma is very difficult to describe, but I would classify it as a mix of a musty smell with an almost...
Stone Beers via Mail from a Friend
I just want to say a HUGE Thank You to my friend from San Diego, California, who sent me these three 22 oz Stone Brewing beers. Aside from the fact that he knows that even in the summer it’s not as nice here as it is there, we don’t get Stone beers here in Central Illinois, so I really appreciated it (along with the fact that I’ve heard Stone’s beers are pretty awesome). I’ve heard a lot about the...
69. Shmaltz Brewing – He’Brew Messiah Bold Dark Brown Ale
I’ve got a lot of different beers in the beer fridge from a few Brewers, so I wanted to grab a beer from a brewer that I only had one beer from. I looked in the fridge and grabbed the He’Brew Messiah Bold Dark Brown Ale from Schmaltz Brewing Company in Saratoga Springs, New York. The bottle says that it is “A rich and robust dark brown ale” and it says “Why is this beer different from all other beers? As...
68. Ska Brewing – Modus Hoperandi India Pale Ale Draft
I screwed up and thought our homebrew club meeting was tonight. After scrambling to get my presentation together, running to the store to pick up examples, and rushing over to the venue, I was dead tired. So, I decided to stop all the running around and grab a beer. I wanted something light and refreshing, but also a bit hoppy, so I went for the Modus Hoperandi on draft. It was a hazy darker orange color and had a thin head on it. ...
67. Broadway Brewery – American Pale Ale Draft
As I’ve mentioned in previous posts, I’m in my old college town of Columbia, Missouri for a fraternity alumni golf tournament. Our foursome actually tied for first place (supposedly, but I played with 3 lawyers, so if you don’t believe our score, try suing us). After a looong day on the golf course, drinking a lot of Bud Light and some O’Fallon Wheach (both to be reviewed later), we headed out for the...
66. Flatbranch Pub & Brewery – Irish Red Ale Cask
This is my sixth and final review of beers for the same Friday evening. It was a very long night, but it was great to catch up with my fraternity brothers at Flatbranch Pub and Brewery. After having their English Pale Ale and the Ed’s IPA, I noticed they were serving one of their beers from the cask, so I asked for whatever it was that was in the cask. It turned out it was their Irish Red Ale. Since it was pulled from the...
65. Flatbranch Pub & Brewery – Ed’s IPA Draft
It was great catching up with 3 of my fraternity brothers at Flatbranch Pub & Brewing on the Friday night before our annual golf tournament. One of the other three is also a homebrewer, so we were trying as many of the craft brews here as we could. We’ve both discussed that a good judge of a brewpub is how good their IPA is – so that’s what we ordered, Ed’s IPA. It was clear and amber in color with a very...
64. Flatbranch Pub & Brewery – English Pale Ale Draft
It’s still Friday night, and we’re on our third stop of the night. This time, it’s Flatbranch Pub and Brewery, a brewpub in Columbia, MO. If you ever find yourself at Mizzou, I highly recommend having a meal and drinks here. The Chokes and Cheese dips is awesome, and it’s even better when it’s on their Flatbranch burger. However, tonight, there was no meal, only beer with fraternity brothers. Along...
63. ABInBev – Busch
Yes, my Friday night back in my college town of Columbia, MO, was an eventful one. Yes, this is my third beer review from that evening (and a few more to come). We moved over from Booches to Coley’s (or as I remember it being called Grill One-Five). We met up with some older alumni, who pretty much live on Busch… So, when in Rome… I had a Busch bottle. Since I drank it straight from the bottle, I can’t...
62. St. Louis Brewery Schlafly – American Pale Ale APA Draft
As I mentioned in my last post, I’m back in my old college town of Columbia, MO for a golf tournament with fraternity brothers. Our first stop in town was one of our favorite burger joints from when we lived there – Booches. Their burgers were named one of the top ten burgers in America by USA Today in 2000. Despite being small burgers – I ordered 4 with my beer – they are incredibly tasty. If you’re...
61. St. Louis Brewery Schlafly – Helles Style Summer Lager Draft
I’m finally catching up on my posts, because this weekend I went back to my old college town – Columbia, Missouri – for a golf tournament with some fraternity brothers. It’s an annual event that I haven’t been able to attend in a couple of years, but I was really excited to be back. So our first stop was burger joint/billiards hall we used to frequent back in the day (I’ll talk more about it in my...
60. Fuller Smith & Turner – Fuller’s London Porter
My wonderful wife made brownies tonight for dessert after dinner. So, when I looked in the beer fridge, the Fuller’s London Porter looked awfully good. Especially when the front of the label says that it is “rich, dark and complex.” The back label says “Fuller’s London Porter is an award-winning example of this historic English style; smooth and creamy with delicious chocolate and coffee flavors derived...
59. Sierra Nevada Brewing – Pale Ale
I’ve been in a bit of a funk lately (and no, it has absolutely no connection to last night’s episode of Glee) and I was really in the mood for a top-notch beer. So, tonight I grabbed the Sierra Nevada Pale Ale which I had been waiting to drink. The bottle says “Sierra Nevada pale ale is a completely natural ale. There are no additives, only the finest malted barley, whole hops, brewer’s yeast, and crystal clear...
58. Breckenridge Brewery – Lucky U IPA
It’s been a few days, but I’m finally getting back to into the swing of things after the long holiday weekend. It’s been a long day, so I was really looking forward to a good IPA, and I grabbed Breckenridge Brewery’s Lucky U IPA. The label says that it’s, “A Hoppy homage to a Denver landmark the Tivoli Brewery. Drink up fortuitous one, help support the Tivoli Brewery preservation.” When I...
57. New Belgium – Fat Tire Amber Ale Draft
Tonight we decided to try a new place out for dinner – at least new to us, since we haven’t been there yet – and we went to Joe’s Station House Pizza Pub here in town. When we got there, I was thrilled because the waitress said they had Bell’s Hop Slam on tap. Unfortunately, she was wrong, and the rest I had to choose from were fairly limited. So, I decided to go for the Fat Tire on draft. When it...
56. Founders Brewing – Dry Hopped Pale Ale
We finished car shopping for the day, and I decided to grab another hoppy beer before heading to dinner. I wanted something that had a good hop flavor, but not necessarily a higher alcohol IPA. I grabbed the Founders Dry Hopped Pale Ale out of the fridge. The label says that it has 35 IBUs and is 5.4% ABV. When I poured the beer, ,it had a pretty large soapy head, which fell slowly, but left some nice lacing on the glass (as you...
Recent Comments