Tag Archives: Craft Beer

Beer Reviews

Samuel Adams Rebel IPA, A Solid West Coast IPA

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IPAs have become so popular that everyone wants a piece of the pie. Samuel Adams decided to make a West Coast style IPA so I had to give it a try to see if it was any good. I question the use of the name rebel to describe it because it has almost become an act of conformity to make an IPA in this style. Still, this beer has an alluring packaging and claims to use many of the hops that are popular on the west coast. Is it any good?

Rebel IPA Sam Adams

 

The rebel IPA pours a light amber color and has a strong pine scent on the nose. The first thing I tasted was a strong malt flavor with some pine hops. I checked the bottle and noticed it is one month away from the enjoy by date. This tells me that this beer might have had a bit more citrus flavor if I had tried some sooner after the release. Still, my second beer had a bit more citrus flavor and both had plenty of hop flavor. Considering my general dislike for all things Samuel Adams, the Rebel IPA is surprisingly good. It didn’t blow me away as much as my favorites but the freshness could be a big factor in that. It is as close as I have tasted from Samuel Adams to the West Coast style and for that I applaud them.

Paul McGuire

Paul McGuire is a craft beer enthusiast. He likes to travel with his husband and enjoy the great outdoors. In his day job, Paul is a divorce attorney serving clients in San Diego California.

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Green Flash Black Freak, a Sour Beer with a Bourbon Kick

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I am still trying to figure out exactly what is the freak part of Green Flash’s Little Freak and Black Freak. It seems the sour flavors are a big part of that. After all, sour beers are not very common in San Diego. I had to rush to Green Flash to try some Black Freak once it was announced on the Facebook page. This is essentially a sour version of a bourbon barrel aged double stout. And boy is it sour!

 

Black Freak 01

Typically a bourbon barrel-aged beer will have a smooth flavor of bourbon. While still present in a way, the bourbon flavors here are mostly overpowered by the sour flavors. This is not a beer for everyone but if you like sour you will enjoy the interesting mix of flavors. Once I got used to the sour flavor, I noticed that it made a good compliment to the bourbon flavors.

Black Freak 02

 

Not everyone who loves Green Flash’s Double Stout will enjoy Black Freak. Sour Beers are an acquired taste and I am still acquiring that particular taste. Still, it was an interesting beer to taste and I’m glad I stopped by.

 

Paul McGuire

Paul McGuire is a craft beer enthusiast. He likes to travel with his husband and enjoy the great outdoors. In his day job, Paul is a divorce attorney serving clients in San Diego California.

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New York City Beer Adventures Part 3 – Brooklyn Brewery

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I made the mistake of visiting Brooklyn Brewery on a Saturday because it turns out that is when they offer free tours. I was a bit annoyed while I was there at how crowded it was and didn’t realize why until after I left. It is a huge brewery and has been around for quite some time. Getting there from New York City on the subway can be a challenge because there are quite a few sections of walking required before you reach it. Even more walking is required if you decide the food truck isn’t up to snuff and go in search of Brooklyn Pizza instead.

Brooklyn Brewery 02

I was disappointed by their use of plastic cups. I also didn’t like how they charged 2 tokens ($5 each) for the double IPA while everything else was one token. They also don’t offer taster flights so if you are planning on trying all of the beers in one visit you better bring a bunch of friends.

Brooklyn Brewery 03

Despite all of the negatives, I went straight for the double IPA because I didn’t want to try to order both the IPA and the double IPA on an empty stomach. The double has a nice citrus/grapefruit bite with some smooth caramel malts flavors. Though I really enjoyed it I’m not sure I would suggest paying $10 for a pint of it.

Brooklyn Brewery Double IPA.
Brooklyn Brewery Double IPA.

I ended up eating at a nearby pizza place called Vinny’s Pizza because I didn’t want to wait for the food truck. Though it was a decent walk to get there, it was worth the distance because the pizza was fantastic. I suggest you stop by Vinny’s on your way to the brewery so you are able to stay as long as you want once inside and don’t have to leave to grab something from a food truck.

Paul McGuire

Paul McGuire is a craft beer enthusiast. He likes to travel with his husband and enjoy the great outdoors. In his day job, Paul is a divorce attorney serving clients in San Diego California.

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Beer Reviews

New York City Beer Adventures Part 2 – The Stag’s Head

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As a craft beer fan I had to make sure I could walk from our hotel in New York City to a bar with a good selection of craft beer. I thought this wouldn’t be hard to find but then it turned out that a number of the bars were boring Irish pubs without any IPA but Goose Island (a New York brewery that was purchased by one of the big beer companies recently). Once I found The Stag’s Head and looked at the beer list online I knew I had to stay at the nearest hotel. Thankfully, they had a solid tap list and a good selection of local beers in bottles to choose from.
The first night I got to try Greenpoint Gobsmacked IPA. It had a nice mellow citrus flavor with a light amount of bitterness. It didn’t particularly stand out but it was enough to satisfy me for a few hours.
New York Beer 01
The second night I got to try Peak Hop Blanc from a Maine brewery. I had tried their IPA down here in San Diego thanks to Trader Joe’s so I was glad to try some of their other options. They also had a simcoe pale ale but it wasn’t hoppy enough for me at the moment. The Hop Blanc was a nice Belgian style IPA with a strong Belgian yeast flavor at the front and some pine/citrus flavors at the back. I sipped this one for quite a while because before ordering my next beer.
After the Hop Blanc I ordered the Ithaca Flower Power based on a suggestion from the bartender and the name, which suggested a floral flavor. The beer was served in a 12oz bottle and I poured it into a pint glass. It had some nice floral aromas and some malts to balance out the flavor. I was quite satisfied by the strong floral flavors and overall very impressed.
Flower Power IPA
Flower Power IPA
The Stag’s Head is a fairly loud and rowdy bar with a sports bar type atmosphere. The bartenders are knowledgeable about their beers and know how to party as well. I enjoyed my time there on Sunday night because there were a number of rowdy drunk patrons putting on a good show. If you aren’t going to be able to get outside the city to explore what New York has to offer, you will get a good taste of the area with The Stag’s Head.

Paul McGuire

Paul McGuire is a craft beer enthusiast. He likes to travel with his husband and enjoy the great outdoors. In his day job, Paul is a divorce attorney serving clients in San Diego California.

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Beer Reviews

New York City Beer Adventures Part 1 – Random Beers I Tried

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I recently made a short trip to New York City with my husband for sightseeing. Of course one of the most important sights is beer. This series of posts will focus on the different beers I was able to try while I was in the area. Part 1 will discuss a few of the single beers I ended up drinking at certain places. Part 2 will discuss a bar called The Stag’s Head where I spent a good amount of time. Part 3 will discuss Brooklyn Brewery, a huge draw because it has been around so long.

To start with I enjoyed some local beer while at the Embassy Suites near Newark Airport our first night. The hotel has a fantastic happy hour that we just barely missed with $2 pints. They have a few local beers on draft and others in bottles available. I got to try Cricket Hill Lager while I was there. It had a nice smooth hop flavor and was overall a solid lager. I didn’t find out until later that I could have gotten an IPA from the same brewery.

Tap list at Embassy Suites.
Tap list at Embassy Suites.

Later at Heartland Brewery in the Theater District of New York City, I ordered their IPA. It had a high amount of bitterness, possibly up to 70 IBU. A tropical fruit flavor came out pretty nice on the front. I was quite satisfied with this one though it did seem that the bitterness left it without much to taste. At the same brewery my husband ordered the oatmeal stout. He enjoyed the coffee and chocolate flavors and thought it was one of the better stouts he has had.

Heartland Brewing IPA
Heartland Brewing IPA

For a video review of these beers, check out this video I took while we were in Heartland Brewing.

After biking around Central Park New York City, we stopped by 3 Monkeys for a pint. They had a fairly large tap list with a number of different IPAs. I eventually settled on Single Cut Billy 18 IPA from Watt NY. It had a good pine hop flavor and tropical fruit with a mellow bitterness around 40 IBU. I enjoyed this one but it wasn’t anything particularly special.

 

Paul McGuire

Paul McGuire is a craft beer enthusiast. He likes to travel with his husband and enjoy the great outdoors. In his day job, Paul is a divorce attorney serving clients in San Diego California.

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