Henry Weinhard’s Blonde Lager

Henry Weinhard’s Blonde Lager:  This has a pleasant and innocuous citrus essence, yet flaunts a toastiness that makes me want to sip and sip and sip….I will definitely consider buying this again next time I am bored with my usual! 

Metolius Brewing Co. Damsel Blonde Ale

Metolius Brewing Co. Damsel Blonde Ale:  This was a very well balanced ale, basic, but good. It had a nice touch of bitterness, finishing with a subtle hint of toastiness.  

Sudwerk Hefeweizen

Sudwerk Hefeweizen:  This had different characteristics than your usual Hefeweizen beer, and it was better than the same brand’s pilsner since it lacked that strange bitter aftertaste. Still, it didn’t have even a remote essence of nuttiness; it actually tasted more like a Monk style Trappist beer. It wasn’t so bad that I couldn’t drink it all. But it wasn’t so good that I’d buy it again. 

Sudwerk Pilsner

Sudwerk Pilsner:  I cannot even describe the flavor of this beer; it was unlike any other I’ve ever had. I suppose I could say it almost had a buttery quality to it, but it also finished with a strange bitterness (bad batch maybe?). It claims to have won a gold medal at some European beer contest in 1995, but all I know is that I hope I can finish the six-pack without having to dump any down the drain! And the prospect isn’t looking good! 

Uinta Brewing Co. Organic Wyld Extra Pale Ale

Uinta Brewing Co. Organic Wyld Extra Pale Ale: This off the beaten path brew opened with a decidedly citrus/grapefruit flavor, and finished clean and crisp. It wasn’t bitter like most of the beers with the same flavor profile, so I enjoyed it immensely! 

Lost Coast Brewery Raspberry Brown

Lost Coast Brewery Raspberry Brown:  This was a delightful brown ale with obvious raspberry top notes, finished with a toastiness that as a whole made me think of raspberry pie! YUM! 

Radeberger Pilsner

Radeberger Pilsner: How can you feel anything but special when you drink a beer that has been crowned the official drink by King Friedrich August III of Saxony (WHO?!?)? I found this to be a crisp pilsner with faint characteristics reminiscent of Trappist beers.  

Henry Weinhard’s Blue Boar Irish Style Pale Ale

Henry Weinhard’s Blue Boar Irish Style Pale Ale:  This had a very “skunky” smell upon opening the bottle, and so I was expecting a Corona style beer. But I was even more pleasantly surprised by the very toasty yet mild taste I got from this. LOVE! 

Henry Weinhard’s India Pale Ale

Henry Weinhard’s India Pale Ale:  Again, not the biggest fan of IPA’s, however, this one had a very subtle flavor to it, so I quite enjoyed the citrus notes. It wasn’t so bitter that I felt I was being hit over the head with taste, and also didn’t leave me feeling like I was going to end up with a headache either.  

Rogue Ales Chipotle Ale

Rogue Ales Chipotle Ale:  I was pleasantly surprised at this brew. It had a little kiss of spice that hit me at the back of my throat, and the overall flavor was nice, but if the bottle hadn’t said “chipotle” I may never have gotten that just from drinking it. It did fall a little flat for me flavor-wise, but I could easily remedy that with a squeeze of lime and a few dashes of salt.

Red Hook Long Hammer IPA

Red Hook Long Hammer IPA:  First off, I LOVE the little comments they make on the bottles of this brand of brew. This one said “Is a fan of dry hopping, which sounds much dirtier than it is”. How can you not love their humor?!? Anyhow, not a big IPA fan, but this one was pretty tasty with its citrusy dry hop appeal and clean finish. The bitter factor was within limits for me, and the ABV was a relaxing 6.5%.

Lost Coast Brewery Tangerine Wheat Beer

Lost Coast Brewery Tangerine Wheat Beer:  This one has been around a while, and I’ve had it several times but never reviewed it. I LOVE to revisit old beers for the sake of a “review”! This is a very citrus forward beer - it is the first, and pretty much only thing you taste, and is just so completely refreshing and delicious that I wouldn’t be able to understand anyone NOT liking this beer! If you haven’t tried it already, go get some now!

Leinenkugel’s Fireside Nut Brown

Leinenkugel’s Fireside Nut Brown:  The description gave this great promise to me…mentioning ‘a maple aroma, with hints of chocolate, caramel, and hazelnut top notes’…however, I wasn’t able to discern ANY of that (maybe the tiniest hint of maple). Still, it was an okay nut brown to sip on; however, it won’t make the list of the usual suspects for me, because it is one of those forgettable brews lost in a vast sea of so many others!

Blue Moon Spiced Amber Ale

Blue Moon Spiced Amber Ale:  This has so many flavors that I love, just not so sure I love them in beer! It was interesting to say the least, but it may be too strange for your average beer drinker. Personally, I was fine drinking it, but could just as easily put it in a banana or pumpkin bread recipe for extra oomph! If you haven’t had a chance to try this warm spicy toasty brew, go find some! 

Buffalo Bill’s Brewery Blueberry Oatmeal Stout

Buffalo Bill’s Brewery Blueberry Oatmeal Stout:  The bottle says “It’s what’s for breakfast”…so I guess it is perfectly acceptable to have this before noon! At any rate, it had a very bold blueberry flavor, and a wonderful toasty oatmeal finish. It was on the heavy side, and its color reminded me of weak coffee, but it was certainly something I could take tiny sips of all evening …or morning if that’s how you roll!

New Planet Gluten Free Beer Raspberry Ale

New Planet Gluten Free Beer Raspberry Ale:  Er, uh…this is beer?!? It does not taste like beer. I could obviously taste raspberry, but it had a rather strange and slightly off putting weird fermented fume-y thing going on. It reminded me of very weak vinegar. Bad batch maybe? Well, I’m not going to buy more to find out… 

Cascade Lakes Brewing Company Slippery Slope Ale

Cascade Lakes Brewing Company Slippery Slope Ale:  This beer was good, but considering I had just tasted a fairly bitter brew, my taste buds may have been playing tricks on me. It had a slight sweetness at first sip, and finished with a slight bitter, almost toasty flavor. It wouldn’t be something I’d choose to drink, but the one I had, I did finish.

Sierra Nevada Celebration Fresh Hop Ale

Sierra Nevada Celebration Fresh Hop Ale:  Brewed from the first hops of the season, using whole cone American hops. It had the same bitter overtones that I usually associated with this brand, but if I think of the bitter as a citrus note, I can almost tolerate it. Almost. The only celebration I could anticipate from this beer is if I can actually finish it!