Karben4 Fantasy Factory

Brewed By: Karben4 Brewing in Madison, Wisconsin  

Purchased: 12oz bottle from a 6-pack bought at Pueblo Food and Liquors in Milwaukee, Wisconsin; 2016 

Style/ABV: American India Pale Ale, 6.3%

Reported IBUs: ?

Sold. 

The best beers are the ones you stumble upon with little or no expectations. I was on a drunken pilgrimage in Milwaukee to celebrate my friend's upcoming foray into holy matrimony when our bachelor party discovered this hilariously labeled beer. Of course we bought it. 

Karben4 brewing is a brewery based out of Madison that was "founded by Appleton, WI natives." The brewery is run by brewmaster, Ryan Koga,and business entrepreneurs Alex Evans and Zak Koga. But more importantly, there is a cat riding a unicorn that is breathing fire on the label of Fantasy Factory. 

The beer pours into a hazy orange body, with lots of sediment just kicking around in the body of the beer. The head retention is on point, and there is plenty of carb. This is a murky beer with lots of crap floating around. Homebrew levels of crap...it's not even juicy. But I love that dank, raw execution. If they ever filter this beer I'll be sad.1

The aroma is on point with how the beer tastes, and hits deep resinous hops. This drifts into weed-land, with hints of bong smoke, and then drops a layer of Mosaic hops with tropical fruits and pineapple. I'm also thinking this is hopped with Nelson Sauvin, as it has a pretty grape-y aroma, with some white grapes and gooseberry. 

Karben4 Fantasy Factory

Malts are what you notice first, followed by the dank weed-like blast of hemp oil, bong smoke, grapes (instantly transporting me to my nostalgic first experience with Nelson Sauvin), and some tropical fruit. This has a pretty rich malt base that is reminiscent of a nice dry, yeasty/bready biscuit. It's kind of like drinking a biscuit blended with pineapple in your stoner brother's bedroom. If that sounds unappealing it ISN'T. This is delicious stuff...

If not for the resinous hop assault, this would be pretty juicy. It is juicy, but it also drifts into resin and bitterness. This is medium-bodied, and feels its weight at 6.3%. This is pretty much a new age West Coast American IPA through and through, with lots of resinous hop bite and biscuit malt up front, a shit load of tropical fruit and grape in the mids, and a bitter and drying finish that leaves lingering smashed pineapple and guava. There's some grapefruit and citrus in here as well.

Rating: Strong Above-Average (4.5/5.0 Untappd)

This is pretty good, as in if this was in my distribution area I would buy it regularly. This could rival Zombie Dust or War Bird or Gone Away as a daily drinker.

Random Thought: Master Musicians of Bukkake's album, Totem One, is a serious beast of an album.

Ballast Point Grapefruit Sculpin IPA

Brewed By: Ballast Point Brewing Company in San Diego, California 
Purchased: 12oz bottle from a 6-pack bought at Whole Foods in Chicago, IL; 2015

Style/ABV: American IPA, 7.0%

Reported IBUs: 70

Sculpin IPA is a top-shelf IPA, but how does the Grapefruit version stack up? About Ballast Point Brewing: 

Like a lot of craft breweries, Ballast Point began as a home brewing outfit. Founder Jack White (not the Jack White) began home brewing, only to realize that sourcing ingredients was easier said than done. So Jack opened up Home Brew Mart, a home brew shop, in 1992. From there, Jack met Yuseff, and the two began brewing in the back of the home brew shop. In 1996 the brewery was born. Because Yuseff loves fishing, the brewery names all their beers after fish. You can read more about the brewery and its history here. 

The Grapefruit Sculpin takes the Sculpin IPA base, and throws grapefruit juice into the mix. Obviously. And this beer really looks the part, with a clear/transparent grapefruit-orange body, and two fingers of off-white head; this is well-carbed and has great lacing. It looks like beer, suck it caesaronis.

Ballast Point Grapefruit Sculpin IPA

The aroma here is dominated by the grapefruit juice, with grapefruit juice popping off the aroma and crushing the base beer. It's not a bad thing, and when the base beer does get through, you are hit with lemon/orange/pine hops, and a light malt base of light cracker and light grain. The grapefruit juice-hop combo works.

This is good...albeit sweet and juicy. The grapefruit juice is overt, and blasts away the hops in terms of balance. The hops that do come through in the taste impart lots of lemon, some grapefruit/orange, and some bitter orange rind on the back end. The super light cracker/grain malts serve the beer well, but I can't help but feel like the juice takes something away from this.

Throwing juice into your beer is, evidently, a risky move. This is nicely done for the most part, with a medium body, good palate depth, good duration, and low complexity. You don't get any alcohol...it isn't too bitter...it's actually pretty refreshing. The grapefruit juice dominates things for better or worse, because the base beer is really up...

Rating: Above-Average (3.5/5.0 Untappd)

I'll toss this a Decent Above-Average. I might go grab a 6-pack of the regular beer just to do a side-by-side comparison, but a part of me feels like the regular version is better? I don't know. This isn't bad, I just feel like adding juice to a beer is something that is going to be hit or miss, and in this case it works but it doesn't necessarily make the regular beer better. And maybe it wasn't supposed to.

Random Thought: I wish I had more time to review beer...I think I need to start doing some short format reviews.

Spiteful The Whale Tickler Mango IPA

Brewed By: Spiteful Brewing in Chicago, IL  

Purchased: 22oz bomber bought at West Lakeview Liquors in Chicago, IL; 2015 (Batch #246)

Style/ABV: American Imperial IPA/Fruit Beer, 9.2%
Reported IBUs: ?

About Spiteful: 

Spiteful Brewing was founded in January 2010 by Brad Shaffer and Jason Klein. Like many brewers, the duo started out homebrewing. As of today, the brewery houses a 2.5 BBL Brewhouse and 5 BBL Fermenters. Currently, as a nanobrewery, Spiteful Brewing is hand delivering to stores and bars. For more info, check out Spiteful's website, or their Facebook or Twitter. 

Whale Ticklers 

Tick tick tick.

"Late hours spent on the trade forums.

ISO: whalez.

FT: whalez.

The thrill of the hunt. At last, it's mine! Tickle now or tickle later? Maybe never, Whale ticklers, drink this on your hunt. Its tropical notes will brighten the most arduous whaling expedition. It's open season out there. Are you licensed to tickle?"

This is raw and cloudy in appearance, like real apple cider or any assorted juices. Head retention is surprisingly solid with lacing and foam, and there is carb abound. Look at this raw, murky ass execution. Beer uncut from a brewery that doesn't GAF except to make good beer.

Aromas are juicy with mango, pineapple, sweet citrus, sweet grass, agave, kumquat, and a basket of tropical fruit. This has some plantains as well, and rides some sweet and super juicy hop notes. This smells juicy, so if it tastes half as juicy as it smells mission accomplished.

This is raw and uncut, with juicy hops around every corner and tons of mango, citrus, some onion/garlic, juicy citrus, and juicy tropical fruit. The bitterness in this grows on the back end, and is heightened as your drink it. I'm not getting a ton of malts, maybe a faint caramel or cracker backing. 

At 9.2% I'm not getting any alcohol. This is juicy, medium-bodied, and juicy. Palate depth is good, and complexity is good. This has a slight astringent bitterness that grows over time, and works a bit against the lush, juicy notes. This is mostly a tropical juice blaster...with tons of mango, some onion/garlic/grass, and lots of nice bitterness. Would tickle again.

Rating: Above-Average (3.5/5.0 Untappd)

I'll toss this a Decent Above-Average. If not for the slightly astringent bitterness, this would be up there. It's a really solid beer, and I love the raw, uncut approach.

Random Thought: #whalez

Spiteful Working For The Weekend

Brewed By: Spiteful Brewing in Chicago, IL  

Purchased: 16oz CAN bought at Bottles & Cans in Chicago, IL; 2015

Style/ABV: American Imperial IPA, 7.9%
Reported IBUs: ?

About Spiteful: 

Pffftt Midwest beer

Spiteful Brewing was founded in January 2010 by Brad Shaffer and Jason Klein. Like many brewers, the duo started out homebrewing. As of today, the brewery houses a 2.5 BBL Brewhouse and 5 BBL Fermenters. Currently, as a nanobrewery, Spiteful Brewing is hand delivering to stores and bars. For more info, check out Spiteful's website, or their Facebook or Twitter. 

Another Midwest IPA, another fantastic beer from one of the now dozens of Chicago breweries making beer. 

This is hazy and unfiltered and a shade too dark, but look at those foam caps. 

This has vibrant candy hop aromas, with guava, intense resin, grapefruit and citrus, and some subtle and more complex hints of white pepper, tropical fruit, and caramel malts.

Spiteful has yet to let me down, and this is stellar with resin, orange, guava, agave, and a shitload of raw mango. Pine.

Carb is spot on, with a medium-bodied mouthfeel that has good complexity and good palate depth. This is dry and finishes clean; this won't give you the beetus. This has the PERFECT balance between not-too-sweet but sweet enough hops. Unlike Finch's...

Rating: Above-Average (4.5/5.0 Untappd)

This is an easy Strong Above-Average. This is up there with some of Pipeworks' better Imperial IPAs, and this is the beer we need to bridge the gap between our Half Acre Senita. 

Random Thought: dae short reviews

Stone Delicious IPA

Brewed By: Stone Brewing Co. in Escondido, California

Purchased: 12oz bottle from a Stone variety pack bought at Jewel-Osco in Chicago, IL; 2015 (Enjoy By 4/22/2015)

Style/ABV: American IPA, 7.7% 
Reported IBUs: 80

How about them Gluten-free IPAs. About Stone:

Stone Brewing are one of the more prominent breweries in the American craft brewing scene. They were founded in 1996 in San Marcos, California, and moved to Escondido, California where they recently expanded their operations. Stone was founded by Steve Wagner and Greg Koch. Koch has a reputation among the craft beer community for voicing his opinion, not putting up with shit, and standing behind his beer. Also...farking woot and fizzy yellow beer is for bitches. 

The Delicious IPA is your typical Stone IPA offering...except it is gluten-free and brewed with the lemony and spicy Lemondrop and El Dorado hop varietals. 

Stone Delicious IPA

This is a juicy yellow-orange, slightly hazy, hop-fueled affair. The head is thick and authoritative, like your grade school lunch lady. This laces better than shoes and Spider-Man's web shooters on dates with Mary Jane. It looks like many Stone beers.

This has a nice aroma, with white pepper, tropical fruit, and pineapple. There's a cracker note on the aroma, and then you get hit with some nice tobacco/hemp/weed. This has appreciable dankness and would pair well with your hasheesh. 4/22 blaze it.

Stone hasn't deviated much from their IPA with this beer, but that's not a bad thing. Stone's IPA is still a classic beer, and their Ruination IPA is up there. This feels very much in the same format, with over-the-top malts providing a sweet caramel contrast to giant American hops. You get resinous lemons, some cut grass, pithy tropical fruits, huge guava and hemp on the back end, and tons of dank as fuck resin. There's a peach note in this beer, and the fruits just keep on coming. It's fruity, juicy, and the bitterness is dank.

This is a medium-bodied, bitter, sticky-sweet, high-carbed IPA. It's in the realm of your typical West Coast offerings and can hold its own against your Lagunitas' IPA or Green Flash IPA. At 7.7%, I'm not getting a ton of alcohol in this. However, this is definitely a heavier IPA. This beer will stand up to strongly spiced foods. The palate depth is good, and this has good complexity. You get a lot of lemons and fruity notes up front; the mids roll into hops and sweetness (I'm getting some of the Yellow/Lemon Starburst that Stone claims you can taste); the back end drops appreciable spice and drying bitterness. Dank, hoppy, dry, spicy. Good.

Rating: Above-Average (4.0/5.0 Untappd)

I'll toss this a Strong Above-Average. Not a bad IPA from Stone. I would buy a 6-pack of this during the warmer months to have on hand. Drink it fresh, pair it with strong, assertive foods.

Random Thought: I just finished my final paper for the Winter quarter. I feel pretty good about that.

Deschutes Chainbreaker White IPA

Brewed By: Deschutes Brewing Company in Bend, Oregon

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

Style/ABV: White IPA, 5.6%
Reported IBUs: 55

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 Chainbreaker White IPA is a White IPA brewed with Pilsner, Wheat, Unmalted Wheat malts; Bravo, Citra, Centennial, and Cascade hops; and also has some sweet orange and coriander thrown into the mix.

Deschutes Chainbreaker White IPA

I love White IPAs. This is such an underrated style, so disclaimers up front, this is maybe my favorite shelf turd beer from Deschutes. The Chainbreaker pours into a hazy, unfiltered, conditioned body that is a radiant yellow-orange color, with a firm white head. There is tons of lacing, carbonation, and all that good stuff.

The aroma is a fantastic blend of Belgian yeast, spice, and tons of white pepper, black pepper, and BOLD pink peppercorns. Bright, sweet citrus comes forth, with oranges, tangerines, pineapple, peach, and some mango. The aroma also has some wheat notes, with a little Belgian funk that leans towards clove. It's just a fantastic fusion of that pink peppercorn spice with those bright citrus hops and complex Belgian yeast aromas. 

This tastes as good as the aroma, if not better. You get blasted with tons of sweet hops that dial up pineapple, sweet lemon, and bright oranges. There's a ton of black pepper in the taste, almost drawing up Saison comparisons. There's a good amount of clove funk, pink peppercorns, bold yeast character, and some biscuity/bready malts in the background. The hops are the main character, and they keep the beer bold and refreshing. The peppery spice rides the mids and back part of the beer, and help to dry everything out.

This is an impressively tight package. At 5.6%, this is super drinkable, and a lot of that is thanks to the impressive hop package. This is medium-light bodied, with good palate depth and good duration. This actually ratchets up the complexity beyond the usual 1-Dimensional Deschutes' approach. Up front: tons of delicious citrus, pineapple, bright hop notes; the mids roll into fantastic peppery spice, pink peppercorns, Belgian funk, some clove, more juicy hop goodness; the back end trials off with clean hops, lingering black pepper, and then it dries out with this Saison-like finish. It's just a well-done beer. 

Rating: Above-Average (4.0/5.0 Untappd)

I'm feeling a Strong Above-Average here. This is an awesome beer, and maybe the only Deschutes beer I would seek out regularly and by the 6-pack. Fantastic stuff, really. It's veering into the land of a Saison...and to me....this is better than many of the Belgian IPAs. Really though, I would pair this with some peppery chicken/turkey. Or anything rustic. 

Random Thought: Shelf turds ftw. 

Deschutes Inversion IPA

Brewed By: Deschutes Brewing Company in Bend, Oregon

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

Style/ABV: American India Pale Ale, 6.8%
Reported IBUs: 80

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 Inversion IPA is an American-style IPA brewed with Pale, Crystal, Munich, Caramel malts; and features Millennium, Horizon, Centennial, Northern Brewer, Cascade, and Citra hops. 

Deschutes Inversion IPA

This pours into a reddish-amber-copper body that is reminiscent of an IPA for sure. The body is slightly hazy, with yeast suspended in the mixture. There's good head retention, nice lacing, and the head soaks up those amber-red hues. Hue hue. 

This also reminds me of Bell's Two Hearted. There's a strong guava-citrus-orange-tangerine aroma from the outset, and it is wrapped in caramel malt sweetness. This dips into some caramel sugars, sticky hemp, tobacco, and honey.

This isn't bad...but it's not blowing me away. It has a good amount of resin, dank American citrus, weed, tobacco, and rosin. The caramel malts heighten some of the earthy/dank character, and this is pretty much a caramel-hops delivery system.

I'd say this is medium to full-bodied, filling up the 6.8%. Palate depth is good, complexity is okay, and I find this to be very much par the course. At one time this may have stood out, but as it stands it is very much in line with what I've come to expect from the style. Up front: guava, citrus, hemp; the mids roll into sweet tobacco; the back end drops more citrus. Nice bitterness and dryness. 

Rating: Average (3.0/5.0 Untappd)

I'm feeling a Light Average on this. It's not bad but it doesn't stand out among the sea of IPAs. I'm sure this was at one time a banger, but I'd rather drink some Two Hearted or one of the many local IPAs available to me. The good news is that Deschutes has an absolute banger in their Chainbreaker White IPA, which I will review soon. 

Random Thought: The evolution of IPAs is fascinating. 

Penrose Fractal

Brewed By: Penrose Brewing Company in Geneva, IL  

Purchased: 12oz bottle from a 4-pack bought at Bottles & Cans in Chicago, IL; 2014 (bottled 12/10/2014)

Style/ABV: Belgian India Pale Ale, 6.8%

Reported IBUs: 65

It's been a while since I have had anything from Penrose, and now they are bottling their beer, sooo.....about Penrose:

Penrose was founded by owner Eric Hobbs and partner/Brewmaster Tom Korder in early 2014. The duo are both former Goose Island employees, and they want to focus on brewing Belgian-inspired session ales, oak barrel-aged beer, beers that use alternative fermentation. Located in the lovely town of Geneva, Illinois, the brewery has a local element that is quaint and inviting. For more info, check out the brewery's website or their Facebook page. 

The Fractal is a Belgian IPA brewed with Columbus, Cascade, and Amarillo hops, 2-Row and Carapils malts, and Bastogne yeast.

Penrose Fractal

This is an orange-amber affair, kicking up a finger of candy orange-tinged head that leaves impressive lacing. This one doesn't look to hazy, but it's hard to say if it is filtered.

The aroma is a nice blend of citrus hops, pine, some mild onion/garlic, and lots of Belgian funk. I'm getting clove, yeasty esters, peppercorns, and some biscuity notes. It definitely smells like a Belgian IPA, fusing Belgian yeast with floral American hops. I am excite.

This is pretty solid for the style. I'm not sure where the onion/garlic hop notes are coming from. Maybe my palate is just shot for the night, but yeah. I'm getting a lot of garlic/onion. There are no Summit hops in here either, as far as I know. The good news is I love garlic and onion, and there is also a fair amount of citrus, pine, crisp hop goodness, and some Belgian clove and black pepper/pink peppercorns to go along for the ride. This has some yeasty esters, and enough funk to square it away as a Belgian IPA. It is also fairly easy-going, which I appreciate.

At 6.8%, I'm not getting any alcohol here. Palate depth is good, and this is pretty crisp and refreshing with a medium-light mouthfeel. This has good duration for the style, and has good complexity. As it warms up, it gets a little more Belgian-y, which is nice. Up front: citrus hops, onions/garlic, some burgeoning clove; the mids hit the clove and peppercorns hard, with some biscuit; the back end drives the biscuit and hops home. I actually really like this, but I'm having a hard time finding the nuances that elevate it above other stylistic examples. 

Rating: Average (3.5/5.0 Untappd)

I'm feeling a Strong Average on this beer. This is very solid, and I could see it being something I stock in my fridge semi-regularly. It's not blowing me away, however. Having said that, I think this has serious food potential. I could pair this with some buffalo wings, or maybe some pork tacos. Pretty solid stuff, all things considered, and you can't beat the price.

Random Thought: I am balls to the walls nuts. Yarrr.  

Jackie O's Pub & Brewery Mystic Mama

Brewed By: Jackie O's Pub & Brewery in Athens, Ohio  

Purchased: 12oz CAN from a 6-pack bought at And Beer in Athens, Ohio; 2014 

Style/ABV: American India Pale Ale, 7.0%

Reported IBUs: 130

When in Rome...about Jackie O's Pub & Brewery:

Jackie O's is a brewery and brewpub based out of Athens, Ohio. The brewery was founded in 2007 by Art Oestrike and his friend, and brew master, Brad Clark. In 2012 when the production facility expanded, brew master Sean White joined the company. For more info, check out their website or Facebook.

The Mystic Mama IPA is a West Coast inspired IPA, brewed with a blend of 5 hops and punching in at an aggressive 7.0% and 130 IBUs. This beer features a dry hop addition of Citra and Simcoe, because why not.

Typical to the style, this pours into a golden-yellow/amber/orange body that is dependent on lighting and camera quality. There's a finger of golden, hop-fueled head that is as Cali as California girls and California beaches. There's lacing, and all that good shit that no one cares about except the ceasaroni judges at FOBAB that can't tell between Lacto and Brett. 

Jackie O's Mystic Mama

On the aroma: OH MY. This is pungent and citrusy straight up, but that quickly gives way to 130 IBUs worth of super dank resin. This is channeling serious resin, bow rosin, candied guava, dank as hell agave, sugar dusted candy citrus, and grapefruit and orange over-the-top. It's just a nutty assault of too much hops.

This is pretty tasty, and effectively delivers that resinous blast of orange, grapefruit, sharp lemon, and then guava-agave. At 7.0%, you don't get much malt, and this leans towards an Imperial IPA. Aside from the resinous blast of citrus, agave, and resin, is some nice caramel and bread malt backings. I actually think they nailed this.

There's not much to add here...palate depth is good, complexity is good, and this is medium-bodied thanks to good carbonation and the hoppy bitterness. This is above-average stuff without doing anything mind blowing. Up front: resinous citrus; the mids roll into resinous lemon; the back end drops resinous agave, rosin, guava, and some bread and caramel dances in the back. Solid.

Rating: Above-Average (4.0/5.0 Untappd)

I'm feeling a Strong Above-Average here. This is pretty much a West Coast IPA done Ohio style...I can respect that. Food pairings here include American bar food, spicy foods, and anything that goes well with a West Coast IPA. You know the drill.

Random Thought: Athens is a nice place.

Jackie O's Pub & Brewery Hop Ryot

Brewed By: Jackie O's Pub & Brewery in Athens, Ohio  

Purchased: 12oz CAN from a 6-pack bought at And Beer in Athens, Ohio; 2014 

Style/ABV: Rye IPA, 6.5%

Reported IBUs: ?

When in Rome, Part 2...about Jackie O's Pub & Brewery:

Jackie O's is a brewery and brewpub based out of Athens, Ohio. The brewery was founded in 2007 by Art Oestrike and his friend, and brew master, Brad Clark. In 2012 when the production facility expanded, brew master Sean White joined the company. For more info, check out their website or Facebook.

The Hop Ryot is a Rye IPA that utilizes rye malts and Simcoe hops. Like the Mystic Mama, this pours into a golden-orange body that is hazy and unfiltered. Unlike the Mystic Mama, this produces two fingers of dense, long-lasting, creamy whipped head. The head is probably the result of the rye malts, and is leaving tons of lacing. 

Jackie O's Pub & Brewery Hop Ryot

On the aroma: big rye spice, orange, rye bread, rye crackers, and tons of rye. This really nails the rye in the aroma, and the faint orange hops that are riding underneath make you want to take a sip...yum.

This follows through in the taste, delivering on everything you got in the aroma. Right away you get blasted with big orange and some grapefruit, and then the beer lays out rye spice, rye bread, rye cracker, and tons of rye and orange. It's pretty much typical of the style, with incredible balance and super clean and on point hops. 

This beer is so simple and refined it is criminal. The balance between the rye and the citrus hops is perfection, the palate depth is perfect, and yeah. There's little to complain about here, as this delivers a crisp and carbonated medium-light finish across your tongue, with good bitterness and nice rye spice to boot. The alcohol is even spot on, with a hint of booze but no heat. The only hesitation is that this isn't particularly complex or mind-blowing...it just kind of hits you with orange and grapefruit up front; drops some nice rye spice in the mids; and drops some more rye spice, rye bread, cracker, and lingering bitter hops in the back. The finish is dry and leaves you wanting another sip, but I wonder if this beer will stand out in my mind in a few years down the road. I guess only time will tell. 

Rating: Average (3.5/5.0 Untappd)

I'm feeling a Decent Average on this. This is teetering between Average and Above-Average, as I really do like the balance that Jackie O's has struck between the rye malts and the hops in the beer. This beer would be awesome to pair with a pretzel bun burger with mustard, or German food. And really, being a refined and well-crafted beer is high praise. This might just be something to keep in your fridge year-round, especially if you live in Ohio. 

Random Thought: Jackie O-yeah, we got more of these coming down the pipeline. 

Sierra Nevada Boomerang IPA

Brewed By: Sierra Nevada Brewing Company in Chico, California 
Purchased: 12oz bottle from the 2014 Snowpack purchased at Binny's in Chicago, IL; 2014
Style/ABV: American IPA, 6.7%

Reported IBUs: 60

DAE Cerro Nevarros? I do. For $14.99 the 2014 Snowpack was too cheap to pass up. This year's Snowpack features their Porter, Pale Ale, Boomerang IPA, and Coffee Stout. About Sierra Nevada:

Sierra Nevada are one of the big players in craft brewing, and one of the first craft breweries to arrive on the craft beer scene. If you check out their history page, you will see that founder Ken Grossman began his quest to build a brewery in 1976. In 1980, Ken Grossman and co-founder Paul Camusi brewed their first batch of Sierra Nevada Pale Ale. According to Wikipedia, Sierra Nevada's Pale Ale is the second best selling craft beer behind Boston Lager. Sierra Nevada is the sixth largest brewing company in the United States as well, cranking out over 750,000 barrels in 2010. For more info, check out their website.

The Boomerang IPA is brewed with Galaxy, Vic Secret, and Ella hops. This one features a malt base of Two-row Pale, and Wheat. This veers into the land of golden IPAs, with golden tones for days. The beer is well carbonated, and kicks up a finger of fluffy, creamy, whipped head. 

Sierra Nevada Boomerang IPA

The aroma here is really nice, with lemon, pineapple, white pepper, and big spicy and resinous hops. As you dig into the aroma, you can pull out some citrus: grapefruit, tangerine, and orange. There are also some grassy notes, and the malt backbone reminds me of a Pilsner for some reason.

This is clean and refreshing but kind of par the course...you get some nice hops. Actually, this is pretty vibrant, with clean lemony hops, white pepper, and lots of tangerine. This has a good amount of spice, and the malt backbone drifts towards that American Pilsner thing...which is weird. It's like crackery.

This is medium-light bodied, with great carbonation, great palate depth, and not a ton of complexity. This is pretty straightforward, with tight execution. A refreshing winter beer for sure...and much cleaner and brighter than the Celebration Ale and Torpedo. This leads with lots of lemon and white pepper up front; and gives way to some resinous citrus and lemon; the back end lingers with white pepper and a fair amount of cracker malts. Not bad, not great, good. 

Rating: Average (3.0/5.0 Untappd)

I'm feeling a Strong Average on this. This is definitely par the course for the style, but it's very well executed with clean lemony lines and lots of nice white pepper. You could pair this with burgers and wings and be in good company.

Random Thought: Beeer...mmm

[Cellar Review] Sierra Nevada Celebration Ale 2011 Vintage

Brewed By: Sierra Nevada Brewing Company in Chico, California 
Purchased: Single bottle (12oz) from 6-pack purchased at Jewel-Osco in Chicago, IL; 2011
Style/ABV: India Pale Ale (IPA), 6.8%

Reported IBUs: 65

For whatever reason, people LOVE to cellar the Celebration Ale. It makes no sense, since this is a hop-forward beer that is all about those "wet hops." Google it. Anyway, I happen to have a 2011 vintage laying around...so here we are. About Sierra Nevada:

Sierra Nevada are one of the big players in craft brewing, and one of the first craft breweries to arrive on the craft beer scene. If you check out their history page, you will see that founder Ken Grossman began his quest to build a brewery in 1976. In 1980, Ken Grossman and co-founder Paul Camusi brewed their first batch of Sierra Nevada Pale Ale. According to Wikipedia, Sierra Nevada's Pale Ale is the second best selling craft beer behind Boston Lager. Sierra Nevada is the sixth largest brewing company in the United States as well, cranking out over 750,000 barrels in 2010. For more info, check out their website.

Seriously, don't cellar this beer. This is a good beer fresh, as I noted way back in 2011. This beer is brewed with Chinook and Centennial hops, and features a Two-row Pale and Caramel malt base. 

[Cellar Review] Sierra Nevada Celebration Ale 2011

The aged vintage pours into a cloudy and hazy reddish/orange body, kicking up a momentous amount of orange/caramel-tinged head. This beer has had some time to carbonate in the bottle, and features a good amount of rising carbonation, sustaining head, and yeast particles that are just floating around. There's a good amount of lacing on the glass as well....

The aroma is a pretty solid indicator that this beer has been aged. Long gone are the vibrant citrus and pine notes. They have been replaced with wet leaves, iced tea, and watery Aspirin. It smells like a weak and aged Barleywine. This is what happens when hops drop off...hop...drop...fade...roll...twerk it.

This doesn't taste as disappointing as you would expect it to taste...but it's no Barleywine. The beer is well carbonated, still, and has those gentle iced tea hop notes with some crushed wet leaves. There's a little caramel and orange marmalade hanging around in the malt base spectrum, and the beer does gently veer in the direction of pine nuts and maple syrup....kind of like a Barleywine. But Cerra Nevaroz releases this shelf turd called Proud Foot that is totally more suitable for aging. Yeah.

For a 3-year-old beer, this isn't awful. It tastes very much like a muted Barleywine. All the faded elements have faded in the appropriate places...it's like being blessed with great tits and also having gravity pull them down favorably. I don't even analogy anymore. This is still well-carbed, retains a medium body, has solid palate depth, and solid complexity. It's a touch oxidized, and the hops generally veer in the direction of iced tea and that pine nut thing you get in aged BWs. Surprisingly, a malt base does retain, showing up in the back-front, mids, and back, mostly as hints of orange, caramel, and bread. This isn't awful, but it is much better fresh. If you want to age a Barleywine, buy a Barleywine. 

Rating: Average (3.0/5.0 Untappd)

I'm feeling a Decent Average on this. It's not bad...but it is definitely better fresh. Food pairings here include nothing. Do you really want to pair food with a 3-year old beer?

Random Thought: Can we finally lay to bed the myth that you should age this beer? If you desperately want to age a Sierra Nevada beer, age their Big Foot.

Victory Variety Pack Round-Up: HopDevil

Brewed By: Victory Brewing Company in Downingtown, Pennsylvania 

Purchased: 12oz bottle from Victory's Variety Pack bought at Binny's in Chicago, IL; 2014

Style/ABV: American India Pale Ale, 6.7%
Reported IBUs: ?

I realize that reviewing Victory's heritage brews is like reviewing Sierra Nevada's Pale Ale or Anchor Brewing's Anchor Steam. Here's the thing. The four beers contained in this Variety Pack (PrimaPils, HopDevil, Headwaters Pale Ale, Golden Monkey) are classics in their own right. But the times, they've been a-changin'. So it reasons that what was once a classic might be viewed differently today than in retrospect. You know. Plus this is my blog/LiveJournal. If you don't like it, suck on deez nuts. But  About Victory: 

Victory Brewing Company is a brewery based out of Downingtown, Pennsylvania. The brewery was founded by Ron Barchet and Bill Covaleski, two avid brewers and lovers of beer. Although Victory opened on February 15, 1996, the duo were brewing brewing beer long before opening their own company. You can read more about their accomplishments on the brewery's about page. The brewery uses German malted barley and European and American whole flower hops (the use of whole flower hops is one unique aspect of Victory). Victory is currently working on expanding to Parkesburg. For more information about Victory, check out their website or their Facebook page. 

Like the PrimaPils, the HopDevil is also a classic, with the review from the Bros going back to 2001. This beer is brewed with a 2-Row German malt base, and whole flower American hops. 

Victory HopDevil

This is pretty much your typical American IPA circa early 2000s epitomized in appearance. The copper tones are dark, the ambers are various ranges of orange, brown, red, and copper, and the head is caramel-tinged. The lacing and carbonation is on point...in many ways this beer is heritage and mundane, but I think most people who really enjoy beer stopped giving a shit about the appearance pre-2008 BJCP, so whatever.

This has a heavy aroma. It dials up the pine and orange, and the malt base is really welcome. I was just about to shit on the aroma for lacking sweetness, but the malt base is surprisingly present and provides some nice rye notes in conjunction with the hops. The aroma still has the forest-like, crushed leaves, pine-orange character typical of the era. I don't know what hops this uses, but it doesn't use any of the sweet ones. Probably Cascade or Centennial or both, and that's about it. Still...despite my reservations, this has really nice depth in the aroma. It's not like Finch's very average IPA, or Dark Horse's Crooked Tree. 

The malt depth is what makes this beer worth your time. This has a pretty standard pine/citrus attack that is earthy and dank, with some resin to boot. The malts provide all sorts of complexity with some shifts towards dark breads, rye, and sweeter notes that even vaguely suggest caramel or dark cakey desserts. Maybe even fruit cake. It's like...in the year 2014...there has been a proliferation of hops. This beer falls back on some American standbys, and wins you over with Victory's unique malt base.

6.7% is about right...it's drinkable, clean, refreshing, blah blah. The heavier hops don't hold this beer down or back, and it has good palate depth and complexity. The bitterness is actually really well integrated against the complex malt backing which is largely unobtrusive but also present. Victory clearly know how to engineer thoughtful beers. I do have to hand that to them. Up front: a nice attack of citrus and pine that is largely in the earthy range; that shifts into really nice peppery spice, rye, dark breads, and more hops; the back end kicks up the bitter and resin, with some resiny pine and lemon coming along for the ride. The finish is actually really nice and this one grows on you if you can get past the aroma and first few sips.

Rating: Above-Average (4.0/5.0 Untappd)

I'm feeling a Light Above-Average. This one is actually growing on me the more time I spend with it...which is a good thing. This is a fairly robust and complex American IPA, and something that was probably on the cusp at the time. Considering that this relies on one or two American hops, it has a lot of complexity. Some of that definitely comes from the malts....I'm even getting some brown sugar notes as this warms up. In my mind, this beer is really about where and when. I wouldn't reach for this as my go-to IPA, but when paired with heavy or rustic foods, I think this would hold up well. That's my 2 cents.

Random Thought: Overall, the Victory Variety Pack is pretty solid at 20 dollars. It features a bunch of above-average classic beers, but nothing that is going to rock your world. Actually...I haven't had anything from Victory that has really blown me away. Just a bunch of Above-Average beers. Maybe that's okay. Anyway...