Sierra Nevada Beer Camp Chico King collaboration wth 3 Floyds. American Pale Ale. 6.5% ABV.

Today marks day 2 of beer camp. Out of the 12 breweries Sierra Nevada collaborated with, this was probably the second most exciting one to me. I have never had anything by 3 Floyds before, but only heard amazing things. They are well know for beers like Zombie Dust, Gumballhead, and Dark Lord. The brewery is based in Indiana, and only distributes to three states, making acquiring their beers extremely difficult. On to the review!

Served chilled in a 12 oz bottle and poured into a snifter. Pours a beautiful copper-amber color with a one finger white foam head. Smells are of caramel malt and some citrus. The carbonation is on the medium side and the body is heavy for a pale ale. The taste is incredibly malty and bready, with an almost chewy component. There are some citrus flavors, but the malt is really overpowering. Not much of an aftertaste.

The reviews I read weren't too keen on this one, but I actually enjoyed it a lot. I would rebuy this one if available outside of this 12-pack.

88/100

Sierra Nevada Beer Camp Yvan the Great: Collaboration with Russian River. Belgian Pale Ale 6.3% ABV.

Out of the entire Beer Camp 12 pack, this was the one I was most excited to try. I have looked and looked for Russian River beers for a few years now, hoping a store might get a bottle or two in of their stuff. I know they don't really distribute East Coast, but one can dream. The only thing of theirs I've ever tried was another collaboration. They did a beer with Avery (Colorado) called Collaboration not Litigation. This beer was a Belgian strong, and was pretty decent but nothing I would spend that kind of money on twice. Nevertheless, once I saw Sierra Nevada was including them in the beer camp, I was excited to try it, regardless of the style. The beer I sampled for this review is a Belgian style pale ale, or blonde ale. Russian River is known for their sours and IPAs, but this will have to do! Anyways, on to the official review.

Served chilled in a 12 oz bottle and poured into a snifter. Pours a beautiful golden color with a half finger white foam head. Smells of lemon, citrus, yeast, coriander and other spices. Carbonation and body are on the medium side. The taste is like the smell. A citrusy zest with banana combines with a yeasty and malty taste with a strong spicy finish.

Overall a pretty solid beer here. I rarely buy blonde ales, but I would actually rebuy this. I'm glad I got to try another Russian River collaboration, and will continue my search for more of their products. Additionally, a good start for my 2 weeks of beer camp!

86/100

Today I am excited to report that I was able to pick up my Beer Camp Across America 12 pack!

Sierra Nevada collaborated with 12 breweries around the country, many of which are regional and difficult for beer lovers to obtain. For example, 3 Floyds only distributes in 3 states, and Russian River is pretty much west coast only.

I will be blogging about my "camping" adventures the next few weeks.

Cheers!

Scott

Evil Twin Imperial Biscotti Break. American Double/Imperial Stout. Copenhagen based brewery but brewed in US. 11.5% ABV.

Served on tap at Upright Brew House and served in a snifter. Pours a pitch black color with a one finger tan foam head. Smells are heavily vanilla and coffee. Some spices also apparent but has a beautifully sweet smell to it. Carbonation is relatively light but there is a nice full body to it. The tastes are of chocolate, vanilla, caramel, coffee and other wonderfully sweet flavors. Aftertaste is mostly coffee and vanilla.

Overall this is a phenomenal beer that I would highly recommend. It is such a different tasting stout due to the sweetness. I think this is how the Mexican Cake would probably taste without the habaneros and with a little more sweetness. I've heard that this beer ages extremely well, and will be on the lookout for it in bottles immediately. A near perfect stout.

99/100

Bear Republic Tartare Rouge. Flanders Red Ale. Healdsburg, CA. 6% ABV.

Served on tap at Upright Brew House on July 15 in a snifter. Pours a reddish-orange amber color with a very thin head. This head disappears almost instantly, and retains a small white lacing. Smells are of dark fruits and is quite acidic. The carbonation is relatively high and the body is full for a Flanders Red. Taste is of fruit-cherrys are evident and there is a sour, puckering finish. This is the most sour and tart Flanders Red style I have ever had, and am surprised by the lack of "funk." Others have described the finish as pickle juice, but I did not detect this.

I am a huge fan of this beer, and am always excited to find good sours on tap. Additionally, everyone knows how much I rave about Upright-they always have a tremendous selection and an incredibly knowledgeable staff.

Overall a home run for Bear Republic. They rarely miss for me and did not disappoint again.

96/100

I picked this vintage Ballantine Beer tray up at a flea market in NYC a few weeks ago. Thought it would be a fun thing to share!

I have several other beer trays and will try to feature them in a later post.

Cheers!
Scott

UPDATE: The beer was removed 2 days after my post. I had a conversation with a different manager who was very receptive and understanding about the freshness (he also knows I frequent his store quite often!). The moral is to always check labels and expiration dates. 




Today is a consumer alert post, and will be a new segment for when I see issues in the craft beer community.

The Pioneer Grocery Store on 74th and Columbus Avenue has been subject to many of my posts, and I have raved about the great purchase-by-the-individual-bottle options. However, last night I went back in and noticed that there were still an incredible number of Stone's Enjoy By 07-04-14 bottles lying around.

I went and spoke to the manager and explained the issue, and why Stone does what it does with this particular beer. He said he had never heard of the beer, and I tried to explain how they put it out fresh in order to maintain quality. He non-chalantly shrugged me off, and went back to his computer. 

This was disappointing to me, as I have been purchasing beer from them for over 2 years now.  In addition to the expiration of the Enjoy By, they priced the beer at $11.99/bottle, at least $2/bottle higher than everywhere else I have seen. The lesson-be careful of the prices listed at stores as well as the expiration dates on bottles!

If you ever observe a vendor selling expired Stone beer, the brewery has set up a website for reporting. Note that the store will not be penalized, and that Stone will buy the beer back.   That website is http://www.stonebrew.com/freshbeer/. I have reported this case on the site.

Cheers!
Scott

Heady Topper. The Alchemist. Waterbury, Vermont. American Double IPA (DIPA). 8.0% ABV.

As recommended by the labeling on the can, served chilled and consumed straight from the can. Smells are of citrus and lots and lots of hops. Additionally, smells piney and earthy with an incredibly fresh smell. Carbonation and body are on the moderate side. The taste is unlike any other double IPA. The unfiltered nature and freshness of this beer shines through, and though it has over 100 IBUs, seems incredibly drinkable. The aftertaste lingers, and is sweet and bitter at the same time, and is surprisingly refreshing

A huge thank you to Matt C for this gift. This was my first Heady in 4 months, and I have been craving it since first trying it in the spring. There is good reason that this is the number one ranked beer in the world, and why craft beer fanatics make pilgrimages to Vermont to buy it. The beer is not available for retail sale in any state besides Vermont, and many stores will run out of the inventory in the first day.

I had quite a week, being fortunate enough to have both Hopulence and Heady Topper. Both, in my opinion, are the two best DIPAs out there. They both get perfect 100/100s (in my book). Both are fresh, unfiltered and unpasteurized DIPAs that manage to pack an insane amount of hops and bitterness into a crisp, refreshing and unique drinking experience. I don't think I could give the edge to either one anymore. They both are representations of the perfect DIPA.

100/100

Mystic Hazy Jane. Summer Saison/Farmhouse Ale. Chelsea, MA. 6% ABV.

Poured chilled from a 750 mL into pilsner glasses. The first two glasses poured a yellow golden color and the third a hazy, coppery light amber color with a hint of gold (a lot going on!) Poured a two finger white foam head that dissipates somewhat quickly. The smell is of wheat, spices, and citrus. The spices are tough to pinpoint. Definitely some pepper in there but there is much more going on. I do smell hints if fruits-apricots and grapefruit are detectable. The taste is a combination if sweet, spicy and funky. Carbonation is high with a medium body to it. Aftertaste is peppery and wheaty.

I paired this summer saison with a nice strip steak. It actually paired pretty well, and I'm glad I did that because I don't think I would have been crazy about it on its own. Still, it was another test subject in my saison experiment. (Still trying to figure out if I really like this style...I'll get back to you on that).

80/100

Southern Tier Mokah. American Imperial Stout. Lakewood, NY. 10% ABV.

Served chilled out of a bomber and poured into a brandy snifter. Pours a pitch black color with a one finger tan foam head. Smells are heavily chocolate and coffee. The carbonation is light with a full body. Tastes are of chocolate, nuts, caramel and coffee. Aftertaste is mostly coffee as well.

Overall this is a delicious imperial stout and another great dessert-like beer from Southern Tier. I had a bowl of chocolate ice cream with this one (as recommended by the bottle) and it paired beautifully. I was lucky to find this one at Wegman's at the new Chestnut Hill Mall. Unfortunately I was not able to buy it down in NYC this spring, but am glad I found it up in MA. If you are lucky enough to come across it still, definitely buy it!

96/100