Founders Highball Drifter

Highball Drifter is a bourbon-barrel aged strong ale. Interesting and good but not great. Some vanilla, molasses, and bourbon.

Rating = 3 glasses.

Trappistes Rochefort 8

Beer: 8 

Brewer: Trappistses Rochefort 

Style: #1 ranked Belgian Strong Dark Ale 

Tasting notes 

Jan 2021:Earlier review was accurate. I would add a titch of Belgian yeasty clove. 

May 2009: A bottle w/ best by date of 25 Jun 13, bottled 25 Jun 08, and consumed 2 May 2009. Complex and delicious. Sugar, apples, mild cinnamon, a tiche of sour, a little alcohol, and spicy hops. Both sips and gulps are great. 

Top 100: 29 December 2005, 10 March 2007, and 03 May 2009. 

Rating: Downgraded from 6 glasses to 5

Samuel Smith's Organic Chocolate Stout

Brewer's Notes:
Brewed with well water (the original well, sunk in 1758, is still in use with the hard water is drawn from 85 feet underground), the gently roasted organic chocolate malt and organic cocoa impart a delicious, smooth and creamy character, with inviting deep flavours and a delightful finish – this is the perfect marriage of satisfying stout and luxurious chocolate

My review:
Bittersweet chocolate dominates. Too sweet and too much chocolate IMO. Sort of a bittersweet chocolate milkshake.

Rating = 2 glasses

Oude Gueuze

Beer: Oude Gueuze 

Brewer: Hanssens 

Style: Gueuze 

Tasting notes: 

(2108) Back to 6 glasses. 

(1005) Tart and refreshing. I wanted gulps, not sips. I wanted some more punch somehow. Downgraded to 5 glasses from 6. 

(0909) A wonderful gueuze. Tart and lemony w/ hints of pineapple. Upgraded from 4 glasses. Initially went to 5 but upgraded again the next morning. 

(0607) Lemon with tastes of apple cider, vinegar, pepper, and occasional hints of sugar. 

Rating: 6 glasses

Bell's Kalamazoo Stout

Brewer's Notes: Named after the city where it all began, Kalamazoo Stout is one of our most classic recipes. This smooth, full-bodied stout offers a blend of aromas and flavors of dark chocolate and freshly roasted coffee, balanced with a significant hop presence.

BeerAdvocate

March 31, 2021
The beer is growing on me. It has flavor but is not "imperial". I thought about upgrading the rating to 4 but think occasional purchases are not in the future.

Rating = 3 glasses

March 28, 2021
A second bottle splits the difference between "Eh" and "I like it!" I was not tempted to grab a bottle out of the fridge when I wanted something dark and did not want a second bottle last night. 

Rating = 3 glasses

March 16, 2021
Kalamazoo Stout is good and interesting. I can't tell if I really like it or if it is "Eh". I have 5 more bottles for research. It is thin with a big charcoal bite. Perhaps the bite is licorice and not black malt. The label reports that it is brewed with brewer's licorice. 

Rating = 4 glasses pending further research. 

Hardywood Baltic Sunrise

Brewer's Notes: Hardywood Baltic Sunrise is conditioned on locally roasted coffee beans from Black Hand Coffee Company in Richmond, VA. Our Baltic Porter is an invigorating, full-bodied lager with a bold aroma of freshly brewed coffee preceding notes of bittersweet chocolate, hints of dark cherry, and a malty, smooth finish.

BeerAdvocate

March 26, 2021
Baltic Sunrise is a nice beer. Coffee flavor is evident but not overpowering. It lacks what I look for in a Baltic Porter.

Rating = 3 glasses

Samuel Smith Oatmeal Stout

March 28, 2021
A recent bottle failed to impress. It had a slight sour twang. I am downgrading the rating pending further investigation

Rating = 4 glasses and that might be generous

Jan. 25, 2021
Sammy Smith's Oatmeal Stout is a delight. It has more body and a deeper flavor than his Imperial Stout. I get chocolate, and coffee and more hop bite. I want more. It might be the perfect balance of drinkability and flavor. Drinkability is becoming more important to me and to a beer's ratings. 

BeerAdvocate

Rating: At least 6 glasses.

My rating system

I have rated beers using a seven-glass rating system, with 7 glasses being the highest. I revised the system on March 27, 2021. The revision will reduce the average number of glasses in the ratings. I want to make 7-glasses a special achievement. The change pushes some 7s to 6s, some 6s to 5s, etc. Since I do NOT revise ratings automatically, reviews posted before March 27, 2021 still use the old rating system. I also began to give x.5 ratings for beers that are too good to be rated x but not quite good enough to be rated X+1. 

7 glasses

New rating = World class = A great example of the style + a favorite + something special. 

Old rating = Top 10ish list / My current favorite beers.

6 glasses 

New rating = Great examples of the style + a favorite.

Old rating = Highly Recommended / Beers I really like and think are great examples of the style

5 glasses 

New rating = Great example of the style + Something that tempts me to buy it whenever I see it

Old rating = Recommended without qualification / Something that tempts me to buy it whenever I see it.

4 glasses 

New rating = Something I am happy to include in my regular rotation

Old rating = Recommended with reservations / Something that I may seek to buy occasionally

3 glasses 

New rating = Something that I may seek to buy occasionally

Old rating = Good / A beer that I enjoy but is not good enough to seek out

2 glasses 

New rating = old rating = Average / Something that I am happy to drink again

1 glass 

New rating = old rating = Poor / I'll drink freebies if nothing else is available

0 glasses

New rating = old rating = No Thanks / I prefer water

Guinness Foreign Extra Stout

Brewer's Notes: Foreign Extra Stout is brewed with generous hops and roasted barley for a bittersweet balance and full-flavored, natural bite. Developed for global export from Ireland, the addition of extra hops ensured this Stout would arrive in perfect condition. Today it is enjoyed by millions around the world.

BeerAdvocate

March 19, 2021
Foreign Extra Stout is an impressive dry Irish Stout. It has loads of charcoal and a nice bitterness. I really liked it. I see why BeerAdvocate rates it so high.

Rating = 5 glasses and I considered 6.

1011
Good dry Irish stout. 

1010
Caramel malt up front followed by odd Guinness sour/tart/bitterness. A sipper: loads of flavor. May rate 3 glasses. 

Rating = 4 glasses

Great Divide Hercules Double IPA

Brewer's Notes: Hercules Double IPA is not for the faint of heart. It is, however, fit for the gods. Hercules delivers a huge amount of hops from start to finish. Its hefty backbone of nutty, malty sweetness balances its aggressive hop profile.

BeerAdvocate

March 16, 2021
Hercules is a great, old-school, West-Coast double IPA. Wonderfully bitter with enough malt to balance the flavor without being thick or sweet. A great beer for hop-heads. I forgot how good it is and am glad that Great Divide has returned to VA. 

Rating = 6 glasses because it lacks the complexity of Pliny the Elder.

Ommegang Hennepin

Brewer's Notes: Hoppy, farmhouse saison with champagne like effervescence; flavors include ginger, spice, orange and toasted grain.

BeerAdvocate.

March 16, 2021
Hennepin remains one of my favorite saisons. I have had trouble finding it in stores for a few years. Found a 4-pack recently, drank one bottle and liked it so much that I returned tot he store and bought 2 more 4-packs. I fear that it is now a seasonal release. It has great flavor and a touch of sour and je ne sais quoi. Here are previous reviews. I am keeping the rating @ 6 glasses because it lack the specialness of Fantôme.

Rating = 6 glasses.

St. Bernardus Christmas Ale

Brewer's Notes
St. Bernardus Christmas Ale is a dark, seasonal beer, full of wintery character and flavours that we brew every year ready for the festive season. 

St.Bernardus Christmas Ale is an intensely dark beer with a full, yet slightly fruity flavour, overflowing with the tastes of winter and zesty seasonal aromas. Aniseed notes are complemented by hints of creamy caramel and fire-roasted chestnuts. This zestiness shows no signes of abating, pushing through to a magnificent finish of dried fruits and chocolate. Just like all of our beers, this brew bears the imprint of the unique St.Bernardus yeast (dating back to 1946), that gives it its own special complexity. Simply stated, St.Bernardus Christmas Ale is the perfect degustation beer to warm your heart and bring a glow to your loved ones on a cold winter night.

Jan. 25, 2021
Alex and I shared two bottles over the last couple of weeks. He liked the first bottle so much that I bought a second one for him for his birthday. It is a delight, a flavorful spiced Quad.

BeerAdvocate

Rating: 5 glasses.

Smuttynose Finest Kind IPA

Brewer's Notes: You could say, then, that Smuttynose IPA is a physical salute to the glory of the American hop grower. The citrusy hop flavor coming from a mixture of Simcoe and Santiams is pleasantly balanced by a smooth bitterness from the Amarillo hops. The beer itself is light bodied and crisp with a golden color that will throw a slight haze, as we bottle it unfiltered. At 75 IBU's, this is definitely not a training-wheels IPA, but is meant for hop lovers looking to satisfy their craving in a way that's not easy to find. We think they’ll be quite pleased.

Jan. 25, 2021

Oh no, how the mighty have fallen. I enjoyed a recent can last night. It was sweeter than I remembered and lacked the hop bite I sought. Perhaps my taste buds were off. Perhaps the brewer is not as careful following being sold at bankruptcy auction in 2018. 

Downgraded Rating = 5 glasses

Aug. 28, 2019
I really like this beer. It visits my refrigerator frequently and was my favorite IPA for years. Alas, I have tasted better: Pompeii. Also, it is not quite in the same class as Pliny the Elder, a double IPA. Therefore and with sadness, I am demoting Finest Kind's rating.

Downgraded rating = 6 glasses.

Previous Reviews

July 12, 2009

Nov. 24, 2008

Samuel Smith Imperial Stout

 

24 Jan. 2021
I drank a Samuel Smith Oatmeal Stout last night. It is better than Imperial Stout. Now I think that 6 glasses is the perfect rating.

07 Oct. 2020

I am really liking the beer. I am thinking about upgrading the rating to 7 glasses. Perhaps its British straight-forwardness is a feature, not a flaw.

13 Sept. 2020

Sammy Smith's Impy Stout is THE English Imperial Stout. Understated flavors of malt and chocolate. Just big enough to be a sipper and easy drinking enough to be a gulper. I saw some 550 ml bottles in Total Wine for a good price and picked up two bottles. I will get more. Was in top 100 on Beeradvocate back in the day. I loved it then and I love it now.

Rating = 6 glasses.

Rogue XS Old Crustacean

XS Old Crustacean is a delicious, BIG, American barleywine. I shared a bottle aged three years with Alex over pecan pie. The pairing was great and the beer was better than the dessert. It combines loads of caramel with tons of hops. The bottle boasts of 110 IBU. I read once that our taste buds cannot distinguish more IBU after 100. The high price reduces my purchases.

Beer Advocate.

Rating = 6 glasses.

Alewerks Coffeehouse

Brewer's notes
This Milk Stout is brewed with a generous amount of Guatemala Antigua coffee. There's a noticeably sweet character but we don't shy away from the coffee's bitter nature. It's the coffee drinker's coffee stout.

04 Jan. 2020
The brewer's notes are spot on. The beer is good, interesting, and flavorful. It combines sweet stout with a BIG dose of coffee. The beer is "smaller" than Hardywood Christmas Morning but has more coffee flavor.

BeerAdvocate.

Rating = 4 glasses. If you love coffee it is probably a 5.

New Realm Tart's Content

Tart's Content is a Berliner Weisse flavored with cranberry, cinnamon, and orange peel. It is refreshing and interesting, something like sour tart tea. Might be nice on a cool summer evening.

Beer Advocate.

Rating = 3 glasses, maybe 4.

Orval Trappist Ale

Brewer's Notes: Orval beer is a high fermentation beer. The ageing process adds a fruity note, which strikes a subtle balance between the beer’s full-bodied yet complex flavour and bitterness.

The beer was first brewed in 1931 and owes its unparalleled taste to the quality of the water, the hops and the yeast used. The brewery has selected very aromatic and unique hop varieties, which hark back to the first brewmaster of Orval, who hailed from Bavaria. The beer’s aromas are very pronounced while maintaining the right level of bitterness thanks to the English method of dry hopping.

The various stages of fermentation – combined fermentation with the original yeast and with wild yeast, followed by fermentation in the bottle – mean the beer must age for some time and requires numerous quality controls.

BeerAdvocate rates it as Outstanding, 1,181st overall, and the BEST Belgian pale ale.

Tasting Notes

December 31, 2020
I drank the last bottle in my cellar with pasta and shrimp with Meyer lemon and arugula. The beer rarely disappoints.

Rating = 6 glasses.

June 20, 2020
Orval has only one name, like Cher. Orval is both the name of the brewery and the beer. The only other beer brewed by the brewery is Petite Orval, a lower alcohol version of Orval.

Orval is a Trappist Belgian pale ale known for having some funk and sourness from Brettanomyces. It is complex and refreshing and goes great with food or by itself.  

Rating = 6 glasses.

June 5, 2020
Orval is an iconic Belgian Pale Ale, It is one of six Trappists ales. It is delicious and known for having a titch of sour from Brettanomyces. 

Rating =  6 glasses.

Dec. 25, 2009
Brewer: Orval Style: Belgian Pale Ale Tasting notes: (1103) A 1 yr. 10 mn. old bottle. Refreshing and good - mild ginger, a hint of pineapple, and brett. A solid 6. (1005) Complex, refreshing, and Brett. (1002) A 1 yr 3 mn old bottle. Oak and brett. Thought about downgrade to 5 glasses. (0911) A bottle @ Can Can, bottled 7 mns. ago. Went great w/ cheese plate. Comments: This brewery is one of only only seven that may carry the name “Trappist”. Rating: 6 glasses

July 9, 2009
Beer: Orval Brewer: Orval Style: Belgian Pale Ale Tasting notes: (0907) A bottle bottled 9 mns. ago. Complex and refreshing w/ a touch of Brett. Sippable and gulpable. May rate 7 glasses. (0704) A bottle in France and a bottle @ Edo Squid. Interesting, refreshing, and complex. Downgraded from 7 glasses. (0703) A combination of Belgian Pale Ale, IPA, and gueze. First taste was fruity, hoppy, and funky. Peppery bite at end increased as beer warmed. Comments: This brewery is one of only only seven that may carry the name “Trappist”. Rating: 6 glasses

Hardywood Bourbon Cru

Dec. 26, 2020
Oh no, a disappointment. The bourbon flavor is much too strong and overwhelms the Grand Cru. Also, I am not sure the bourbon is good. The beer has aged at least 1.5 years. I purchased it in May 2019. Perhaps the bourbon comes forward with age. Or maybe the beer varies by year brewed. The result is a dramatic decrease in rating. I might buy another bottle to try the beer again.

Rating = 3 glasses

May 10, 2013
Wow! A wonderful beer. A nice Grand Cru aged in bourbon barrels. The bourbon is present but not overwhelming and the underlying quad adds sweetness, depth and complexity. The 10.2% ABV is hidden but will hit you hard if you are not careful. A wonderful use of Bourbon barrels and a rare twist for a quad. Inventive and delicious.

6 glasses

Druid Pen Golden Swan Coolship

 

Golden Swan is a wild ale aged in a coolship. Eh. I tasted apple juice. 

Rating = 2 glasses.

Jester King B is for B

21 Nov. 2020

B is for B is a delightful saison. I call is a saison even though Beeradvocate calls it wild ale. Back in the day saison would have been mixed fermentation. This one is, too. Flavors include tart green apples and oakiness that reminds me of cheese. I enjoyed a bottle with Alex as we ate appetizers from Monica as a prelude to Emily's and Lisa's BD dinner. Yummy.

Rating = 6 glasses.

Stone Xocoveza

Brewer's Notes: This is a beloved stout. When first introduced as a limited special collaboration release with San Diego homebrewer Chris Banker (after his recipe won our annual homebrew competition) and Cerveceria Insurgente, it was an instant hit and fans began clamoring for its return. Seeing as how its amazing flavor profile is evocative of Mexican hot chocolate, featuring coffee, pasilla peppers, vanilla, cinnamon, nutmeg and a generous amount of chocolate, we concluded it was the perfect stout to re-release in celebration of the Holidays and the entire winter season. This is now a highly anticipated yearly tradition that we are pleased to present from us to you, and makes a perfect wintry gift from you to your friends, loved ones, or simply to yourself. Cheers!

22 Nov. 2020
I enjoyed a 10-oz. glass at Stone's tasting room after a bike ride. I sat outside and drank the beer with some Ronnie's barbecue. What a nice way to end a ride.

The brewer's notes are accurate. The beer is not heavy or think. nothing like motor oil like some big stouts. It is black. It combines many flavors but none overpower or are BIG. I get hints of coffee, chocolate, peppers, vanilla, and cinnamon. 8.1% abv is totally hidden. I would liken it to a toned down and subtle version of Gingerbread Stout. I like it a lot. It combines flavor and complexity with lightness not found in many stouts. I want to make a six-pack or two a holiday tradition.

Rating = 6 glasses.

St. George Pilsner

Nov. 2020
St. George Pillsner is a fine example of the style. It is easy to drink and has a nice flavor. I will update as I drink more.

Beeradvocate

Rating = 4 glasses.

Sierra Nevada Celebration

Brewer's Notes: Fresh Hop Ale; no spices.
We first brewed Celebration IPA in the winter of 1981. Each year, we use only the first fresh hops of the growing season to create this complex and robust ale. Layered pine and citrus hop aromas balance delicately against rich, malt sweetness to shape this bold wintertime classic.

10 Nov. 2020
I return to an classic Christmas ale. Back in the day, Celebration was in BeerAdvocate's top 100. Celebration's release tells me that Christmas is near. It is a robust IPA with a strong malt backbone and plenty of bite from NW hops. I still think that it is a titch too piney but cannot resist a 6-pack or two this year.

Beeradvocate. 

Rating = 4 glasses.

02 Dec. 2008

Tonight's year-old Sierra Nevada Celebration Ale was a welcome oasis of hops in a malty winter. Celebration Ale is a highly rated IPA. However, I tend to find it to be too piney. Drinking one at room temperature felt like drinking Pine Sol. I cellared a bottle last year to see if time would smooth out the hops would. It did and the piney taste was greatly diminished. I noticed a sweeter malt beginning than what I remembered and it was balanced by a nice hoppy finish. However, the hops did not have "zing" and a slight piney aftertaste persisted.

Celebration Ale is a seasonal release from Sierra Nevada. The brewer consistently makes good beer and sells it for good value. I recommend that new beer geeks sample the brewery's products to learn about good beer and beer styles. The brewery tends to put an American twist on styles by using bitter Northwest hops.

Huyghe Delirium Tremens

Brewer's Notes: Colour and sight: pale blond, the fine and regular effervesce ensures a fine and stable head.

Scent: Slightly malty, a nice touch of alcohol, spicy.
Flavour: Feels like the sound shot of alcohol is igniting the mouth. In reality the tongue and palate are warmed. The taste is characterized by its roundness. The aftertaste is strong, long-lasting and dry bitter.

November 2020

Delirium Tremens is a fine example of Belgian strong pale ale. It combines Belgian yeast and wheatiness with peppery spice and some clove. The alcohol is felt more than tasted. 

Beer Advocate

Rating = 5 glasses.

Sierra Nevada Hop Bullet

Brewer's Notes: Brewed with a double-barreled blast of Magnum hops and lupulin dust.

Hops are the name of the game with a Double IPA, but we knew we had to take it one step further. With Hop Bullet, we’re using a new technique, hitting the beer with a double-barreled blast of Magnum hops and lupulin dust—pure, concentrated hop flavor—directly into the tank to emphasize the intense pine and citrus flavors of classic West Coast hops.

BEGINNING GRAVITY: 17.6° plato
ENDING GRAVITY: 2.4° plato
BITTERNESS UNITS: 60
YEAST: Ale yeast
BITTERING HOPS: Magnum
FINISHING HOPS: Centennial, Cascade, Chinook, Magnum, Crystal
MALTS: Two-row Pale, Wheat, Dextrine, Chocolate, Acidulated

01 Nov. 2020

I enjoyed my second can last night. The beer impressed. Loads of hop bite without the heaviness and sweetness of many double IPAs AND still fairly balanced. I am increasing the rating.

Rating = 5 glasses.

28 Oct. 2020

Hop Bullet calls itself and double IPA and Beeradvocate agrees. I call it a really nice IPA.

Rating = 4 glasses, maybe more pending further investigation.

Unibrue Don de Dieu

 

Brewer's Notes: Don de Dieu (Gift of God) was the name of the ship that Samuel de Champlain sailed on his mission to “explore and discover the vast and perilous land of America” in the name of the King of France. His travels led to the founding of Quebec City in 1608.

Inspired by this great adventure, Unibroue created Don de Dieu—an abbey-style triple wheat beer refermented in the bottle. Soft and round, it has delicately nuanced fruity and hoppy notes.

01 Nov. 2020
I fear that my first review was too exuberant. More clove came through on the second bottle. The clove is true to the style but is I think it detracts from the taste. I am downgrading the rating.

Rating = 4 glasses.

28 Oct. 2020

The bottle claims to be a pale ale but Beeradvocate correctly calls it a Tripel and ranks it as the 8th best Tripel. 

Don de Dieu is a wonderful beer. It is wheaty, yeasty, and spicy with a titch of clove. Do I like it better than Allagash Tripel? I am keeping the rating a little lower pending further investigation. 

Rating = 5 glasses.

Weihenstephaner Pilsner

Brewer's Notes: Known as "Pilsner" in the USA.
Golden-yellow and bright, with 32 bitter units and quite hoppy compared to most of the other Pilsners our Weihenstephaner Pilsner comes up with a distinctive aroma of hops with a pleasant bitterness. This combination provides a balanced mix and guarantees great enjoyment. Brewed according to our centuries-old brewing tradition on the Weihenstephan hill.

29 Oct. 2020
Pilsner is a fine example of German pilsner. The taste is grainy and grassy, a tiche musty, and has a decent bite from what I think are Noble hops. My bottle was bottled about 6 months ago. I suspect that a fresh bottle would be crisper and have a better hop profile.

Beeradvocate

Rating = 4 glasses

Smuttynose Robust Porter

Brewer's Notes: This hearty, mahogany colored ale is brewed to evoke the dark, full-bodied ales that were a favorite of dockworkers and warehousemen (hence the name “Porter”) in 19th century London. It is a good bet that when Dickens’ Mr. Pickwick sat down for a pint, we would have been drinking an ale much like our Robust Porter.This is a smooth and very drinkable beer, characterized by its well-balanced malt and hops, plus subtle notes of coffee and chocolate.

29 Oct. 2020
Robust Porter is a fine beer. It delivers a strong dose of chocolate and smoke but doesn't go crazy. Probably too simple to rate 6 glasses. It will be a regular in my rotation.

I feared that the beer would not be as good as I remembered. Smuttynose declared bankruptcy a while ago and distribution in VA stopped for a while. The only difference I noticed is that the brewery is using cans now instead of glass bottles for Finest Kind and Robust Porter. I view the change as a feature, not a flaw.

Beeradvocate classifies it as a Robust Porter. In this classification a Robust Porter is between Brown Porter and Stout.

Rating = 5 glasses

(1005)
Last of the 6. Upgraded from 4 to 5 glasses after following it with Stockyard Oatmeal Stout. 

Rating = 5 glasses

(1003) Flavorful, easy drinking, and nice smokey bite at finish. A dry Irish stout? May rate 5 glasses. 

Rating= 4 glasses

Blue Mountain Dark Hollow

Brewer's Notes: Bourbon Barrel Aged Stout. Dark Hollow blends the miracle of two crafts--brewing and distillation--to create a work greater than the sum of its parts. An Imperial Stout has been aged in charred American oak bourbon barrels still dripping with uncut whiskey. For 100 days the young beer patiently breathes in and out of the wood, gaining complexity, character, and serious attitude.

I was looking forward to revisiting Dark Hallow after having Concealed Darkness. I came away slightly disappointed.  The beer is a titch thinner than I expected. It falls between Stout and Imperial Stout. Also, the bourbon is sightly more prominent than I prefer.

Beeradvocate

Rating: 4 glasses

25 Sept. 2020

Dark Hollow Imperial Stout is a delightful bourbon-barrel aged Imperial Stout. The bourbon is light. The base is a nice balance of sweet dark malts and hop bitterness.

FYI: Blue Mountain changed the name from Artisanal Ale to Imperial Stout.

Rating = (at least) 4 glasses.

13 Oct. 2013

Rating = 4 glasses

Blue Mountain Concealed Darkness

Concealed Darkness is an Imperial version of Dark Hallow, already classified as an Imperial Stout. It is a fantastic beer. It pours black with a dark brown head. It is Big AND Smooth, too easy to drink. Flavors include bourbon, chocolate, oak, char, and caramel, but all or muted and blended. It finishes with a wonderful charred bite at the finish. I don't know if the bite at finish is from hops, chocolate malt, bourbon,or all three. Yummy. It replaces Hardywood Kentucky Christmas on my list of beers rating 7 glasses. It came from a crowler sold by Corks and Kegs as part of an anniversary celebration. I look forward to drinking my second and last crowler in my cellar

Beer Advocate. 

Rating= 7 glasses.

Birds Fly South Brand New Eyes

Brand New Eyes is "table saison blended with Red Wine Puncheons starting in 2016." Yeasty with sniffs of lemon and musty red wine.Interesting but not great3

Beeradvocate

Rating = 3 glasses.

Rare Barrel Map of the Sun

Map of the Sun is a "Golden sour beer aged in oak barrels with apricots." The description is spot on, some lemon tartness and apricot. I described the apricot as mango as I was drinking it. Came from a crowler sold by Corks and Kegs as part of an anniversary celebration. The beer is wonderfully crafted but fall prey to my adage. "I don't like fruit in my beer except when I do."

Beeradvocate

Rating: = 4 glasses

3 Floyds Zombie Dust

10 Oct. 2020
Still yummy but I am downgrading the rating to 5 glasses. I prefer Alpha King's sweetness.

Rating = 5 glasses.

07 Sept. 2020
Zombie Dust is a wonderful example of American pale ale: nicely balanced but not sweet, with loads of pleasant hop flavor and bitterness. Yummy.  

Currently ranked #1 American pale ale on BeerAdvocate and #35 overall. 

Rating = 6 glasses.

Samuel Smith Taddy Porter

Taddy Porter is THE English Porter. I may revise after drinking another one from Fullers. Understated bitterness and charcoal. Perfect for a block of cheese and 1 hour in a pub.

BeerAdvocate

Rating = 5 glasses.