Julian Hard Cider Cherry Bomb

Julian Hard Cider Cherry Bomb: WARNING! This is dangerously delicious! I am not even going to go into the unspeakable amount of calories in this cider (it’s not even listed on the bottle), but it is wickedly good, and since I only drank one, I won’t worry. It was pleasantly tart with a very natural cherry taste. It is 100% natural according to the bottle, and you can tell it is a high quality drink, with plenty of antioxidants (from the cherries!) to boot. Definitely try this one if you see it, it would even make an acceptable toasting drink to serve at your Thanksgiving, Christmas, or New Year’s Eve parties!

Chatoe Rogue First Growth Pumpkin Patch Ale

Chatoe Rogue First Growth Pumpkin Patch Ale: The first impression as this brew passed my lips was PUMPKIN! And then more pumpkin and subtle spice, followed by a wayward thought wondering if this was beer or pumpkin juice. Of course, after numerous sips (half of a large bottle), my brain just simply disconnected due to the high rate if inebriation and I no longer cared what it was, just that is was damn good! I highly recommend this brew for any autumn occasion which calls for alcohol!

TBA Extra Hoppy Brown Ale brewed with Brown Sugar and Molasses

TBA Extra Hoppy Brown Ale brewed with Brown Sugar and Molasses: This was another collaboration by several breweries - Bear Republic, Fat Head’s, and Stone. I do regret to come to the conclusion that I simply didn't care for it. It was entirely too bitter, despite the sweet additions, but it just didn't work for me. I know this probably goes against the grain for a lot of beer lovers out there, but yikes. I tried to like it, but the heaviness and hoppiness just makes me cringe.  

Samuel Adams Old Fezziwig Ale

Samuel Adams Old Fezziwig Ale:  This festive beer reminded me of fermented figs. I didn’t hate it, but wasn’t entirely sure I loved it either. My fruity impression must come from the flavors it was brewed with, however there was no fruit mentioned. Caramel and chocolate malts, cinnamon, ginger and orange peel, to me, came across as sweet dried fruit. It is something I would recommend trying, especially if you are a fruitcake lover (I know you must exist, since fruitcake has never disappeared from the market) and maybe I should try fruitcake again too because it might help me decide the verdict for this interestingly unique beer. 

Henry Weinhard’s Redwood Flats Amber

Henry Weinhard’s Redwood Flats Amber:  I find it very cool that Henry Weinhard’s has been coming out with new brews lately. Their beers are also pretty delicious and easy to drink. This one was no exception. I found it to be well balanced between the bite and the nutty finish, and it also tastes like a heavier, bolder beer, but goes down light. Buy it if you see it, and tell me what you think!

Great Divide Brewing Co. Wild Raspberry Ale

Great Divide Brewing Co. Wild Raspberry Ale: I really liked this beer from Denver Colorado! It is fermented with raspberries, which lends it a true fruity flavor upon first sip, but then finishes like a lightly toasty beer. It’s pretty mellow so the tastes don’t knock you out, and it’s very easy to drink all by itself or paired with spicy food and even fruity desserts. 

La Citrueille Celeste de Citracado

La Citrueille Celeste de Citracado: Fancy. This offering is a collaboration of three brewers – Bruery, Elysian, and Stone. Ale brewed with pumpkin, yams, toasted fenugreek, lemon verbena, and birch bark. It had a very earthy flavor, a subtle sweetness, and was heavy in flavor, yet not overpowering. It also had a fairly light ABV at 5%, which surprised me considering it tasted more potent. It was fine for an unique craft beer to be sipped on occasion, but for me, it would be one I’d prefer to use in bread. 

Leinenkugel’s Snowdrift Vanilla Porter

Leinenkugel’s Snowdrift Vanilla Porter:  If you are new to porters, this might be the one to ease you into them. It’s very mellow, and not as strong and bold as some that I have tried in the past. It also seems lighter than some other brands of the same type. It is easy to drink, but still requires slow sipping to appreciate the flavors…the bottle mentions a complex malt revealing layers of cocoa and coffee, but it wasn’t too obvious to me as it seemed more subtle than in your face. It was still good though!

Salzburger Stiegl Radler

Salzburger Stiegl Radler: Beer with lemon soda, and there are other varieties like grapefruit and raspberry too. Oh WOW! So delicious…this is a Shandy – Austrian style. They take their Stiegl –Goldbräu Premium Lager and mix it 50/50 with lemon soda. The beer has a slightly skunky smell and taste upon first sip, and then you taste the sweet and tart of the lemon soda. I could easily drink too many of these, so thank goodness my husband only bought me one! The only drawback for me though was the sugary aftertaste from the soda. I am usually a diet soda person when I drink sweet things, so that was the only thing that would keep me from buying more. Other than that, this was top notch flavor!

Dogfish Head Tweason’ale

Dogfish Head Tweason’ale: This is a gluten-free sorghum based ale brewed with strawberries and buckwheat honey. I can certainly detect the strawberries right off, but mostly I taste the honey. If the bottle didn't say it was beer, I would think it was just some new “health drink” on the market. It wasn't really sweet, but didn't really resemble beer either. It was more like a natural soda for the health conscious…except for the fact that it has 170 calories and 6% ABV! 

Full Sail Session Fest Premium Red Lager

Full Sail Session Fest Premium Red Lager: Warm and toasty, this red lager lives up to its name “Fest”. Makes me feel like celebrating the autumn months curled up by the fire and watching some NFL on the big screen…enjoying this of course! The flavor of this beer is hearty enough to satisfy, but not too heavy to make you uncomfortable. 

Shock Top End of the World Midnight Wheat

Shock Top End of the World Midnight Wheat: The bottle describes this as ale brewed with midnight wheat (not sure what that is exactly), chocolate malt, chili and spice, so I was expecting BIG flavor! I have to say I was disappointed in that expectation, but it was still an okay beer. The chocolate flavor was so incredibly subdued, that it could have been a figment of my imagination, and the chili and spice? I couldn't detect it even a tiny bit. The finish was a bit on the bland side too, but all this must because I was prepared for something with a bit more punch. 

Full Sail Brewer’s Share Big Daddy J’s Malt Liquor

Full Sail Brewer’s Share Big Daddy J’s Malt Liquor:  Okay, so malt liquor generally has a bad name for its cheap buzz and stereotypical low income customer, but here we have a more upscale craft brewery making the stuff. What?! Yep…the recent brew-sci grad Jason Muñoz decided to pay homage to the inner college student in all of us with this surprisingly good version of malt liquor that also donates a portion of the proceeds to help ‘Helping Hands Against Violence Inc.’ - good beer, AND a good cause. That should be reason enough to try it!

Oakshire Brewing Line Dry Rye

Oakshire Brewing Line Dry Rye: Never judge a beer by its label. So I've learned…this was one, that at first glanced, looked like it would NOT be something I’d enjoy. However, I was on a “Tap Walk” of a variety of breweries where I live and this was one of Oakshire’s offerings and it was very good! It has a nice citrus forward, but not overly bitter hop flavor, with a crisp finish. A very refreshing beer to quench your thirst in summer, or any day of the year!

Extra Rich Honey Brown Original Lager

Extra Rich Honey Brown Original Lager:  So if Pooh Bear was real and not a fictional character, this would be his “Hunny Pot” right? This was a very mellow and slightly toasty lager with a distinct honey aftertaste.  It was easy to drink, nothing crazy, just good old-fashioned comfort food, er, uh – beer.