i was mildly surprised tonight when i opened a bottle of something that i never had in a bottle before, but i'd had on tap at 4.7%, when it seemed stronger, then looked at the bottle and it was 6.3%. not quite sure how that works, but whatever. adnams' broadside gets three thumbs up from me on any scale

I just bought one of these. (slightly different label but, same product)



I'll TR after I drink it tonight.

The Elysian! Where do you live, Kevroc? This is from what used to be a small time Seattle brewery that put out some amazing beer. They've gotten bigger, though, and I saw they started bottling a year back or so. Are they now distributing nationally/regionally?

I had a bottle of Hitachino Nest White Ale the other night, but I forgot to post a review at the time. Someone earlier in this thread had given it a glowing review, so I leaped at the opportunity to try it. Ran me about $11 for a 21 (not 22) ounce bottle. It's 5% ABV. The pics:





This was a very nice beer. It was perhaps a little more subtle than some whites, and it wasn't as spicy as some, but it had a complex malt with a nice fruitiness. This is a little too expensive for me to make buying it a regular thing, but it's a very nice beer. .

Tonight's beer is Harpoon's Firth of Fourth Ale. 5.4% ABV, and cost me $6.29 for a 22 oz bottle.



It pours a somewhat translucent brown, and the head you see doesn't hang out long.



The aroma is quite strong. I get coffee, wood, and a heavy malt. The flavor lives up to the billing. There's also some caramel in there, and even a light grassy hopping, which is somewhat unusual for Scotch ales, which aren't really known for hops. The flavors linger quite nicely, which I honestly didn't expect for a beer that isn't particularly sweet or particularly strong. This is good drinking, though, and it's exactly what I like in fall beer -- dark brown and malty. I'm going to give this beer a hefty and a half rating. This is my favorite Scotch ale to date, and the price is reasonable. The bottle says it's a limited edition, so if you happen to see one, snatch it up.

They've been bottling and distributing at least to the grocery stores here in western Washington for at least the 5 years I've been able to buy beer.

I was out beer shopping today, and I had a very good day. Since we're coming to the end of the summer season, my beloved Medocino White is on its way out. It's sad that it'll be gone, but it trade, it was on sale . I picked up 2 cases at $17 each! Also, since we're coming into the fall season, I picked up a case of Magic Hat's Jinx and a sixer of Post Road pumpkin ale. Most significantly, though, I got to answer my own question about the distribution of Elysian beer. They had it in! I picked up a few different styles to try, and the first I'll review will be their Jasmine IPA. It's a 6.3% ABV beer of which a 22 ouncer cost me a fairly modest $5.99.



It pours a clear gold with a goodly head on it. The head is persistent and laces my glass.



Taking a whiff, you know exactly how this beer got its name. Instead of smelling dominantly of hops, the jasmine is what comes through. This beer is brewed with dried jasmine flowers, and it doesn't disappoint in that regard. It has a clear, sweet, flowery flavor from them. This beer doesn't seem to be as bitter as most IPAs, but it does have a slightly bitter, hoppy finish. I wish it was a little hoppier, though. I'm going to give this beer and a half . It's an exotic treat, but I don't think the malt or hop character are strong enough to take this beer to the next level. People looking for a change of pace should pick this one up.

Liking their Scotch ale so much, I picked up Harpoon's Red Rye Ale from the same series to review. It was on sale for $5.53, less than the Scotch ran me. However, this beer isn't really worth me doing a full review of. It's a pretty standard red ale, only a moderate hop character and only an average malt. At least it was cheap, but .

Sorry for the late response. I'm in New York.

The Immortal was pretty run-of-the-mill IPA to be honest.

Very similar to Dogfishhead 60 or even Smutty, imo.

My bevvy place has been attacked by Pumpkin Ales!!!!

Theres like 4-5 different ones in stock.. I'll prolly cave in and buy some but, which one to choose??

Kev,

Post Road (an alternate brand name for Brooklyn) is far and away my favorite.

I'm late to this thread, but much love for BotW.
/lives within walking distance

Anyway, the new Wegmans at Calkins & East Henrietta has a pretty nice selection too; not nearly as deep as BotW, but 10x better than any other grocery store selection I've ever seen. Plus I'd think you're significantly less likely to get a expired/skunked/whatever beer at Wegs.

Welcome, my fellow Rochesterian. Have you been to the Tap & Mallet on Gregory (old MacGregor's) yet? That's the beer bar I was referring to above. It's a nice place that always has something new to try.

Haven't been there yet, but have been meaning to check it out. I've heard good things.

I definitely recommend it.

Don't have time to read the thread at the moment, but I assume someone has mentioned Mac & Jack's out of Seattle. There is definitely some mystic there given that it is REALLY hard to find outside the Seattle area, but it is an EXCELLENT amber. Yummy.

Tonight's beer is another from the Elysian brewery, this time their Dragonstooth Stout. It also ran me $5.99 for a 22 oz bottle. It is 7.5% ABV, so a little stronger than most standard stouts, but not as strong as an imperial.



On pouring this, I had to check the ABV again. This beer pours just like an imperial stout: thick, jet black, and very little head.



It smells like an imperial stout, too: floral hops, coffee, caramel, dark malt. This beer is delicious. I also taste chocolate in addition to the things I smelled, and I still can't believe that this beer is only 7.5% ABV. It tastes as rich and thick as any imperial in the 9%+ range. It's not so much that I taste the alcohol, but the stronger imperial stouts are generally more flavorful than the standard ones. I love the balance in this beer. No flavor especially dominates; both the hoppy bitterness and the rich sweetness of malt come through and linger nicely. I've been going back and forth between rating this beer a 4.5 or a 5, but I think I'll go ahead and give it the perfect rating. I'm definitely impressed at how bold and rich this beer is, despite its lower alcohol content. Most beers only get this much after they've had the bejeezus fermented out of stupid amounts of barley. This is probably the best beer that won't get you drunk after drinking a 22 ouncer of it, and the price is very reasonable. Imperial stout lovers should not miss any opportunity to get this beer.

Just turned 21 a week ago. I'm still a relative beer/alcohol noob. Right now my favorite drink is Woodchuck (any variety). Any suggestions for a beer that doesnt have too heavy of a taste? Not exactly sure the difference between stout/lager/etc., I guess thats just google-tarding?

CHOO CHOO ITT.

My knee-jerk reaction is to reccommend Bud nips for the shortstacker!

But, I wouldnt reccommend Bud to my worst enemy, rice beer FTL.

I guess a nice crisp not-too-heavy beer that is easily found would be a nice Stella Artois for a starter.

i myself prefer IPAs and other ales... maybe try some Sierra Nevada Pale Ale or Lagunitas. It may be an accquired taste but, hops = , imo.

CHOO CHOO

I also tried Honey Brown a few weeks ago, which was also delicious. Not sure where that falls in relation to your other suggestions.

You're probably looking for sweeter, milder brown ales. Things like Newcastle, maybe some various Scotch ales, etc. You might also try some German hefeweizens (make sure they're German or that I've approved them in this thread; most American hefeweizens suck) like Franziskaner or Koenig Ludwig, which are lighter but still on the sweet side.

Time for my review of the Immortal IPA from the Elysian Brewery. It also ran me $5.99, just like all the others, and packs 6.3% ABV.



It pours the usual gold with a light white head. There's some lingering head as I drink it now, but not as much as some IPAs.



The beer smells distinctly of grapefruit, even moreso than, say, Arrogant Bastard. That's what comes through in the flavor, too. The malt is a little sweeter than many non-imperial IPAs, and it's not so overpoweringly hoppy or bitter as some, either, so the citrusy hopping and the sweetness give it a pretty pronounced grapefruit flavor. This beer doesn't knock my socks off, but it's a pretty tasty IPA. and a half .

not sure if anyone has mentioned this yet( i only read the first 100 posts), but im drinking this today and i really like it. Left hand milk stout has a fairly low alcohol rating (5.5%) , it has a strong coffee flavor with chocolate notes and a decent sugary syrupy finish. I'd rate it 4.0/ 5.

Also, hi wookie! FWIW i got very drunk almost every day last year and drank about 300-400 different beers. i wish i had found this thread earlier. I like imperial stouts,(pretty much all stouts) porters, belgain quadruples, and actual good dark lagers. Not a big fan of barelywine most of the time.

Edit: this 3rd paragraph has been changed to: blah blah blah by the writer.

Bryce,

Happy to have you here. The Left Hand Milk Stout has been mentioned a few times, but I think yours is the first proper review. I've been thinking about picking it up, and w/ your review, I probably will.

There's nothing wrong w/ reviewing a beer that's been reviewed before, though. I like hearing multiple takes on various beers.

For tonight's review, I'm going to try Southern Tier's Un-Earthly Imperial IPA. It's an 11% ABV beer that ran me $7.49.



It pours a reddish gold w/o much head. What little head there is does hang out for a bit, but there's not much lacing.



The beer smells pretty hoppy, but it doesn't taste that way. It doesn't have nearly enough of the nice hoppy flavors I love. It has some token bitterness, but not so much in the way of floral or grassy flavors. It has a bit of citrus, I suppose. In a vacuum, this is about a 3 heart beer, but it's pretty poor as an imperial IPA. I'm going to give it and a half .

Today I tried two new beers; Ofallon pumpkin ale($7.99 for a six pack, 5.5% alcohol and Wild Dawg blueberry lager($6.99 for a six pack, 8% alchohol)

When I poured Ofallon out I liked the way it looked. It had a decent head and it poured gold/bronze- like a good lager.

This is the first time i had a pumpkin flavour beer. It tasted of cinnamon, and cloves with hints of pumpkin. To be honest i didnt really enjoy it that much. I thought the clove-ish finish was too watery and the spicing didn't really interest me. overall, i would have preferred a plain lager like pilsner urquell/ stella. I give it... 2 and 1/4

I also tried wild dawg blueberry lager.

This pic i downloaded off the interwebz because i don't have a digital camera looks nothing like the beer i had. It poured bright red. A pink head dissapears quickly and it looks black with a little bit of a bloody tonage to it. IT didn't really taste like a beer and it tasted like cranberry juice. To emulate the experience i reccomend buying some cranbeery juice and dumping 50ml of maker's mark into it. i give it and 1/2 's. ick.

I decided that chips and salsa contrasts well with pumpkin ale and ate much hot sauce. the end.

I almost bought some of that Wild Blue, but I opted against it. Def. looks like I made the right decision.