Deschutes River Ale

Brewed By: Deschutes Brewing Company in Bend, Oregon

Purchased: 12oz bottle bought at Binny's in Chicago, IL; 2015 

Style/ABV: American Pale Ale/Session Ale, 4.0%
Reported IBUs: 28

The best part about hosting a party is being left with a fridge full of shelf turds. About Deschutes:

The Deschutes Brewing Company was founded by Gary Fish on June 27th, 1988, when they opened the doors to their Bond Street Public House pub. The brewery has since expanded, growing to be one of the top craft beer producers in America. The brewery also operates a pub in Portland, and has a dedicated brewing facility overlooking the Deschutes river. For more information, check out the brewery's website; their Facebook page; their Twitter; or Wikipedia. 

The River Ale is a "session" Pale Ale, brewed with Pale, Munich, Carapils, and Crystal malts; and Cascade, Crystal, and Nugget hops. This pours into a dense, hazy, orange body. The head retention is outstanding, and you get lots of lacing, along with ample carbonation. It's just a good looking beer and it sets the tone for the aroma. 

This is like a toned down Two Hearted Ale, with grassy hops, big peach notes, floral lemon, and tons of biscuity-cracker malts. The peach-melon sweetness is welcomed, and this begs refreshing.

Deschutes River Ale

Session Ales were a short lived fad, but this is pretty enjoyable for a 4.0% Pale Ale. It's like a toned down Two Hearted with more sweetness. I'm getting some lemon, orange, and lots of melon-peach sweetness. The hops are grassy, and the malts hint at cracker-biscuit. There is enough hop oil to give this mild resin bite. 

This is simple, drinkable, and blah blah. At 4.0% this is light-bodied, well-carbed, and you really ought to buy this in the 24-pack format. You can drink this while driving your kids to soccer practice, or while fishing, or for hydration while doing all those sports activities that your typical craft beer neckbeard does. For a light Pale Ale, this has good complexity, duration, and mouthfeel...there's a lot of bright citrus notes, melon, peach, and grass. The cracker-biscuit malts work. 

Rating: Above-Average (3.5/5.0 Untappd)

I'm feeling a Light Above-Average here. This is about as nuanced as this style gets, and I like this a lot. If this came in a 15-pack and cans like Founders All Day IPA, I would buy it on the regular. Unfortunately, I have no interest in buying this beer in a 6-pack. But never say never. Pairings: a fresh and bright salad, white fish and potatoes, fishing. 

Random Thought: Mmm shelf turds. 

Revolution Unsessionable Imperial IPA

Brewed By: Revolution Brewing Company (Revolution Beer LLC) in Chicago, IL

Purchased: 12oz CAN from a 6-pack bought at Sheridan 'L' Lounge in Chicago, IL; 2014

Style/ABV: American Imperial IPA/Strong Ale, 10%

Reported IBUs: 100

Let's be real, the session beer fad sucks. Most session beers are American Pale Ales rebranded using the popular but equally obnoxious "IPA" tag. They are nothing new, and more often than not, incredibly predictable. Tonight's beer is a big fuck you to all the session IPAs...a big ass, all-American, Imperial IPA brewed with 6 hops, that punches in at 10%. Suck on that. About Revolution:

Revolution Brewing is a brewery and brewpub based in Chicago. Revolution's roots are tied to founder Josh Deth, a homebrewer who began working at Golden Prairie Brewing. A few years later, while working at Goose Island, Josh dreamt up the idea for Revolution Brewing. In 2003, Josh and his wife opened Handlebar, while Josh worked as an Executive Director of Logan Square Chamber of Commerce. While working for the Chamber of Commerce, Josh found an old building on Milwaukee Avenue, and the wheels began to spin to open up a brewery. After three years of raising funds, Revolution Brewing opened its doors on February 2010. In July of 2011, Revolution added a 2nd floor Brewers' Lounge. And in 2012, the company opened a new production brewery and tap room. The brewpub is located in Logan Squre on 2323 N. Milwaukee Ave; the brewery is located on Kedzie Avenue at 3340 N. Kedzie Ave. For more information on Revolution, check out their history page here! 

The Unsessionable IPA is pretty ridiculous, and honestly, I am surprised this came in a 6-pack. This beer is brewed using 6 hops, including: Centennial, Chinook, Amarillo, Galaxy, Citra, and Cascade. Punching in at 10% and 100 IBUs, this beer rides that line between a Strong Ale, Barleywine, and American Imperial IPA. 

Revolution Unsessionable Imperial IPA

The appearance is everything you'd want: hazy orange, with a finger of caramel-tinged head that lasts forever thanks to the hops fueling it. This is clearly well-carbonated, and looks the part of the best American Imperials. It's like California girls and sunsets. Totally, Hollywood.

I can't remember the last time I smelled something this good coming out of Chicago. This challenges The Unicorn Hits Rock Bottom with ease, and makes Zombie Dust look like the mid-ABV IPA that it is. This smells like fat oranges, giant tangerine candies, and I shit you not: gummy peach orange ring candies. The sweet peach and tangerine notes flirt with peach iced tea, dank West Coast vibes, and tropical fruits...but it's all grounded in that sweet peach goodness.

This hits with your tongue with honey-like sweetness. The hops gloss over your palate leaving traces of orange, tangerine, and sweet peaches. This is insanely sweet, with hints of caramel sugars between the aggressively dank and resinous hop punch. This rides the imaginary line between an American Strong Ale or Barleywine...I'm reminded a bit of Dogfish Head's 120 Minute IPA. I'm also reminded of the Pipeworks/Rock Bottom collab, Unicorn Hits Rock Bottom. This is just an insane fusion of intensely sweet hops propped up against a huge malt profile. The hops are equally fruity as they are bitter and dank. The bitterness provided much needed contrast to the sweetness. But this keeps things cool and sweet. It's very West Coast, and reminds me of Florida. 

Soak these in alcohol and walla

At 10%, this beer is way too fucking drinkable. I'm serious, I killed 12oz of this in like ten minutes. That's how you get wasted. Despite being drinkable, this is till heavy-handed and full-bodied. The carbonation and hops cut through a lot of the fat, but this is a curvy beer in every way possible. The palate depth here is outstanding, and this is about as complex as something like this is going to get. It's not quite the 120 Minute...but it's flirting with that Unicorn Hits Rock Bottom. I mean really, this unfolds with sweet orange, peach gummy rings, and tangerine up front; that gives way to intense caramel sweetness, rich sugars, and dank as hell hops lurking beneath; the back end trails with intense hop sweetness, resin, and a sticky-sweet finish. This is truly an aggressive, big, over-the-top interpretation of an American Imperial IPA. A true "fuck you" to all the session bitch beers out there.

Rating: Divine Brew (4.5/5.0 Untappd)

I'm feeling a Light Divine Brew on this. If Revolution can keep this around on a regular basis, well, then Chicago is going to finally have a coveted Imperial IPA. For all the good work that Pipeworks is doing, they aren't releasing beers on the regular. Chicago is seriously lacking in the Imperial IPA category, and this beer right here has potential. I'd also love to see this barrel-aged. Food pairings: spicy foods. Seriously. Get this beer to go with some over-the-top wings, and thank me later.

Random Thought: At 100 IBUs and 10%...you'd expect this beer to hold up to spicy foods. And it does! I've now paired this beer with homemade taco salad and nachos. In both situations, I piled on the hot salsa (homemade, with fresh habaneros, baby!). This beer cuts through the spice with ease. 

Founders Mosaic Promise

Brewed By: Founders Brewing Company in Grand Rapids, Michigan

Purchased: 12oz bottle from a 6-pack bought at Binny's in Chicago, IL; 2014 

Style/ABV: American Pale Ale, 5.5%

Reported IBUs: 50

Have you heard? Mosaic is the new Citra. About Founders:

Founders is the holy grail of Michigan brewing. Based out of Grand Rapids, Michigan, Founders was founded in 1997 by Mike Stevens and Dave Engbers, and produces some of the best beer in the world. If you haven't heard of Founders...well, what are you doing? Get on that, now.

The Mosaic Promise is is a single malt, single hop beer. "Proceeds from the sale of this new ale will benefit ArtPrize, the world’s largest art competition that takes place annually in Grand Rapids, Mich." The Mosaic Promise is brewed with Golden Promise malts, and Mosaic hops, and is a limited release beer for September 2014. 

Founders Mosaic Promise

This pours into a juicy, hazy, yellow-gold body. This actually looks like a tropical fruit explosion, and the haze is my bag. I swear, this beer is trying to win me over. The beer kicks up a finger of white-tinged head that is surprisingly short lived but gives way to a great cauldron effect. The lacing and carbonation is spot on.

This beer is a grower not a shower...I was underwhelmed upon first sniff, but this is growing on me as I open the second bottle. It is clean, with watery and refreshing hops...much like a Pale Ale. I'm getting passion fruit, tropical fruits, and huge citrus. The citrus goes into dank and resinous orange...but without the peel. I'm also getting some light blueberry notes, which is a thing for Mosaic hops. There is some lemon zest in here as well.

Taste: This is watery, clean, and refreshing. The malts aren't assertive, and I appreciate that. This reminds me of Zombie Dust, and it also reminds me of Maine's Lunch and Another One. That's good company to keep. This rolls out sharp and resinous/dank lemon, cut grass, lemon zest, orange, and big tropical fruit. I'm getting some pineapple in the taste that I wasn't getting in the aroma. The finish is surprisingly bitter, but it's clean and dry. The malts give hints of cracker and stale biscuit, which is a nice backbone for this fantastic hop.

It's too bad this is a limited release, because this is a super delicious Pale Ale. It's light and refreshing at 5.5%. Light bodied, good palate depth, and good complexity for a two-note beer. This is refined: up front you get resinous citrus, tropical fruit, lemon zest, pineapple; the mids roll into more of the same, with some grassy notes and burgeoning cracker; the back end dials up the cracker/biscuit and finishes dry. This has a fairly dry/bitter/hoppy finish for just 50 IBUs, and I like it.

Rating: Above-Average (4.0/5.0 Untappd)

I'm feeling a Strong Above-Average here. This could rival your Zombie Dusts or Lunches, so it's too bad it is a limited release. I don't think it is quite as good as Another One, but yeah. This is a cute little banger, I'd recommend pairing it with a leafy burger or some rustic spinach pizza. Pretty solid shit, if you see a sixer pick this up while it's hot/fresh/etc.

Random Thought: DAE sours are the new IPA? 

Firestone Walker Easy Jack Summer Session IPA

Brewed By: Firestone Walker Brewing Co. in Paso Robles, California

Purchased: 12oz bottle from a 6-pack bought at Jewel-Osco in Chicago, Illinois; 2014 (Bottled on 05/13/2014)

Style/ABV: American Pale Ale / Session IPA, 4.5% 

Reported IBUs: 45-50

Session IPAs. Blargh. I've been hesitant to acccept this style: American Pale Ales brewed with more hops and less malts. The end results is usually paper thin hops propped up on a nonexistent malt backbone. It would be like if the Hulk ripped out your spine and asked you to run a marathon. You'd be like, "you green asshole." At any rate, Firestone Walker's Easy Jack is lauded as one of the best Session IPAs. But is it? Ohhh, we will see. Yes we will. About Firestone: 

Tonight I'm looking at a beer from the folks at Firestone Walker Brewing. The brewery was founded by brothers-in-law Adam Firestone (son of Brooks Firestone) and David Walker (husband of Adam's sister). The brothers brewed their first beer in 1996, in a small facility rented from the Firestone Vineyard estate in Santa Barbara County. In 2001, the brothers-in-law purchased SLO Brewing Company in Paso Robles, CA, and set up camp. Despite being relatively new to craft beer, the brewery has a ton of accolades, and is known for their Reserve line and their oak barrel brewing system. You can learn more about the history of the brewery here and here. 

The Easy Jack is is a Session IPA that punches in at 4.5% ABV and packs 45-50 IBUs. This has quite the malt and hop bill. The malts include: American Pale Malt, Munich Malt, Malted Wheat, English Carmel-35, Cara Pils, and Rolled Oats. The hop list is: Bavarian Mandarina, Hallertau Melon, Blend of New Zealand, and American Mosaic hops. That's not a bad list of ingredients. The description implies that this one is aggressively dry-hopped, and also features substantial malt backings for a 4.5% beer. But how does it stack up?

The body takes on a light copper/gold color in low light. The body is just ever so slightly hazy, with moderate sized bubbles lazily popping upwards. The head on this one is mostly white, and I kicked up a finger's worth. There's lacing and head retention is good. That's about it. Pretty simple stuff.

Firestone Walker Easy Jack Summer Session IPA

On the aroma: hops, baby. But, there is also some gentle malt backings, namely honey and bread. There's a light cracker character as well. The hops on this one are floral and sweet. I'm definitely getting the Mosaic, with sweet tropical fruits and passion fruit. There's some melon and watermelon on the nose as well, along with some candied hop notes, and nondescript floral hoppiness. It smells sweet, hoppy, malty-sweet, and light. 

Yeah...so the taste is still very much between an APA and an APA with the malt backing dropped off. This one does manage to drop some light cracker malt in the back, but it's still like drinking hop jello. It's such a weird style. BUT, Firestone has effectively nailed this one. The taste drops a lot of big hop character on your tongue, and the front end is surprisingly dense. There's a lot of watery zest and watery pepper up front, along with floral hops and suggestive tropical fruit. Some watermelon rind comes along for the ride, and the back end trails off with floral and grassy bitterness and hints of that cracker note. There's some passion fruit in here as well, along with hints of zesty lime.

This is stupid drinkable at 4.5%, and features a refreshing and zesty light-bodied mouthfeel. This is a beer you can drink by the 6-pack, preferably while sitting out on your patio or while doing house work. Maybe even after mowing your lawn. You never know! This isn't complex, and the palate depth basically unravels in two parts; it's amazing how a beer's balance can change things. Up front: bitter and floral hops, zesty melon and citrus, watery/zesty spice; the back end trails with spice, floral bitterness, watermelon rind, and a little cracker malt backing. It finishes refreshing and clean.

Rating: Above-Average (3.5/5.0 Untappd)

I'm feeling a Light Above-Average here. This is a solid Session IPA, but I think there are probably better attempts at this ABV range. I don't know? I'll have to revisit the Founders' All Day IPA. Either way, this is a refreshing beer that you can pound freely and pair with things like brats, pizza, pasta salad, patio barbecue, and things of that ilk. It's also super affordable. Not bad. 

Random Thought: I used two bottles of this beer to simmer onions and brats, and it turned out fantastic. Do use this beer to cook with. 

Uinta Wyld Extra Pale Ale

Brewed By: Uinta Brewing Company in Salt Lake City, Utah  

Purchased: 12oz CAN from a 12-pack bought at Binny's in Naperville, Illinois; 2014

Style/ABV: American Pale Ale, 4.0%

Reported IBUs: 29

The Uinta Sum'r/Wyld 12-pack is an awesome little bundle. I picked this one up to crush while moving this weekend. How did these two 4.0% session beers hold up? Well, pretty good, actually. About Uinta: 

Uinta Brewing Company has been around since 1993. The brewery started out in a small, renovated mechanic's garage, in Salt Lake City, Utah. The brewery began to build reputation by distributing beer to bars, restaurants, and liquor stores. By 1996, the brewery installed a bottling line. In 2001, the brewery outgrew its original building, and Uinta relocated to a 26,000-square-foot facility. The Uinta name comes from an east-west mountain range located in northeastern Utah. The brewery names many of its beers after Utah's landscape, including their Cutthroat Pale Ale (after the state fish) and their King's Peak Porter (after Utah's highest peak). An additional note: since 2001, Uinta has been 100% wind-powered, and in 2011, the brewery installed solar-electric paneling. Uinta continues to grow, and continue to produce some stellar, award-winning beer. For more info, click HERE.

The Wyld Extra Pale Ale is a lighter-bodied, sessionable, Pale Ale. This one is aggressively dry hopped, and punches in at 4.0% ABV and 29 IBUs.

The Wyld pours into a hazy, light amber-gold body, kicking up a finger of just slightly off-white head. The head is driven by hops, and leaves some nice lacing. This one is not as carbonated as the Sum'r, with moderate carbonation rising upwards. 

The aroma is exploding out of the glass, with lightly juicy hops as the prominent note on the nose. I'm getting hints of pine, big sweet citrus, orange/grapefruit (citra?), kumquat, apricot, and light onions with some greasy hop resin. From the aroma alone, you'd probably guess that the malt backing here is light: there's a little bread and cracker. 

This is watery and light, with little in the way of substantial malt backing. The back end takes a shift into minerality with ghostly cracker character standing in the back...hiding behind a corner, across the street, if we are being totally honest. The back end plays things like an English Bitter or ESB. The front end is watery with water chestnuts, peppery spice, and grapefruit rind. This is light and drinkable, but seems one-dimensional in some regards.

What else is there to say? This is very drinkable at 4.0%, and the mouthfeel here is light-bodied. Palate depth is average, and complexity is below-average. This isn't complex, and really unfolds in two parts: the front end, which features watery chestnuts and refreshing grapefruit rind; that rolls into some Bitter/ESB like notes, with minerality and floral hops. The back end has some hints of bread and cracker, but this is mostly a hoppy affair. This has a club soda vibe at times.

Rating: Average (3.0/5.0 Untappd)

I'm feeling a Light Average on this beer. While it is successful in being sessionable, refreshing, and drinkable...I wish there was a little more here. I know that's asking a lot, but this beer has a lot of those Session IPA qualities...hoppy with little in the way of malts. I'm getting a real English Bitter vibe from this beer, which isn't a bad thing at all. I might not pick up this beer on its own, but in the context of the Sum'r/Wyld 12-pack, this works just fine. Food pairings here would include lightly spiced pub food, fried chicken, and pizza. 

Random Thought: Good job Uinta, this was one of the better 12-pack decisions I made. It was also cheap too (I think the 12-pack was around ~$10).

Uinta Sum'r Summer Ale

Brewed By: Uinta Brewing Company in Salt Lake City, Utah  

Purchased: 12oz CAN from a 12-pack bought at Binny's in Naperville, Illinois; 2014

Style/ABV: American Blond Ale, 4.0%

Reported IBUs: 17

The Uinta Sum'r/Wyld 12-pack is an awesome little bundle. I picked this one up to crush while moving this weekend. How did these two 4.0% session beers hold up? Well, pretty good, actually. About Uinta: 

Uinta Brewing Company has been around since 1993. The brewery started out in a small, renovated mechanic's garage, in Salt Lake City, Utah. The brewery began to build reputation by distributing beer to bars, restaurants, and liquor stores. By 1996, the brewery installed a bottling line. In 2001, the brewery outgrew its original building, and Uinta relocated to a 26,000-square-foot facility. The Uinta name comes from an east-west mountain range located in northeastern Utah. The brewery names many of its beers after Utah's landscape, including their Cutthroat Pale Ale (after the state fish) and their King's Peak Porter (after Utah's highest peak). An additional note: since 2001, Uinta has been 100% wind-powered, and in 2011, the brewery installed solar-electric paneling. Uinta continues to grow, and continue to produce some stellar, award-winning beer. For more info, click HERE.

The Sum'r Summer Ale is brewed with Sorachi Ace hops and light malts. This one punches in at 4.0% and 17 IBUs, and is available between May and July.

Uinta Sum'r Summer Ale

This one pours into a hazy, yellow-straw-urine body -- cloudy like Gatorade and golden showers -- kicking up two fingers of fluffy, white head. The head is sustaining nicely (suck it, adjunct lagers), and the beer has mean streaks of carbonation. Clingy lacing webs the glass and this is inviting from the get go.

Initially, you might think the aroma is a simple blast of crackers, light grains, and cereal malts. But the aforementioned characters are amplified by the Sorachi Ace. There's some synergy here between the hops and malts. There's a nice lime note on the aroma, floral hops, mild dill, and a really nicely defined biscuit and cracker note. The light grains and cereal malts round out the aroma, which is otherwise clean and simple.

This is super simple in execution, with cracker and biscuit malts providing a lot of the flavor, backed by zesty floral-lemon hops. The hops are peppery and clean, hinting at lime, lemon, and that dill character. The water has a slight mineral edge, which reminds me of a good Pilsner or ESB. 

At 4.0%, this is not only incredibly crushable, but it is incredibly flavorful as well. This is truly a session beer, but does not compromise in terms of flavor. Palate depth is good, with a substantial light-full to medium-light mouthfeel. The cracker/biscuit malts provide substantial weight to the backbone, but the lemon-lime hops cut through the fat making this incredibly boofable and quaffable. This is not a complex beer, but it's not supposed to be. Up front: refreshing malt sweetness, cracker, biscuit; the mids roll into peppery hops and huge lime, lemon, and dill; the back end trails off with lingering floral hops, lingering lime and dill, minerality, and Pilsner-esque biscuit malts. This is a well-crafted beer. 

Rating: Above-Average (4.0/5.0 Untappd)

I'm feeling a Decent Above-Average here. Yeah, I'm serious. This is a simple beer, but FOR THE STYLE, and FOR THE ABV, this is a banger. How they managed to pack so much flavor and malt balance into a 4.0% ABV beer is beyond me. This beer is super drinkable, and that's about all you need to know. If you must pair this with food, pair it with lightly grilled chicken, fish, mashed potatoes, and anything that benefits from mild dill and lime character.

Random Thought: Fuck the Session IPA trend...but cheers to Uinta. Uinta flies under the radar, and that's a shame.