Aect Schlenkerla Hellerbrautrum Rauchbier Marzen

Posted on by Evan

I have not had Aect Schlenkerla Rauchbier in a very long time. This is Marzen, 5.1% ABV, from Bamberg, Germany. Schlenkerla uses smoked malt from their own maltings and beechwood to smoke this bottom-fermented beer. Schlenkerla has been in business since the 14th century. That’s a long time! This Marzen pours a very dark brown with a three-finger beige head that leaves thick lacing behind. The aroma is smoky with sweet smoked malt. The flavor is smoked/smoky, malty, dark sweet, and smooth. This has a fuller mouthfeel. The finish is somewhat sweet, malty, and smoky. The aftertaste is like the finish. It is smoother and has a lingering smoked malt. This is an excellent Rauchbier that is an A+. This is more of a fall beer, but it isn’t too heavy to have. Aect Schlenkerla Rauchbier Marzen would be a great addition to barbecue meats. I highly recommend Aect Schlenkerla Rauchbier Marzen. Please stay safe, be kind to each other, and remember to enjoy responsibly! Cheers!

Ayinger Privatbrauerei Ayinger Maibock

Posted on by Evan

I have had Ayinger Maibock many times, but I’ve never sat down and properly reviewed this spring bock beer from Ayinger Privatbrauerei. This 7% ABV spring beer is from Aying, Germany, using Hallertau hops. This is traditionally lighter than other bock beers. Ayinger has been brewing beer for more than 140 years in Upper Bavaria, 30 minutes from Munich. This beer pours gold with a two-finger bright white head. The head leaves great lacing behind. The aroma is sweet, crisp, clean, and there’s a cereal note. The flavor is clean and crisp. There is sweetness and cereal-like flavors. This beer has a lighter mouthfeel. Then it finishes semi-sweet, crisp, and clean. The aftertaste is less sweet, but there are very light breaded notes. They don’t stay long. This is no surprise that Ayinger Maibock is an A+. Germans really brew delicious beer. This Maibock really captures the essence of spring. If you haven’t had this, then you should. In my opinion, it is the best Maibock. Please stay safe, be kind to each other, and remember to enjoy responsibly! Cheers!

Royal Bliss Brewing Co. Lord of The Hops New Zealand IPA

Posted on by Evan

Whenever I see a Royal Bliss Brewing Co. beer, I usually buy it. Recently, I spotted Lord of the Hops New Zealand IPA while shopping at my local Total Wine. This 6.6% IPA uses Nectaron hops. This hop was developed over 17 years by Plant and Food Research; it is widely used in IPAs, NEIPAs, and Pale Ales. This New Zealand hop has notes of bold, juicy pineapple, passion fruit, peach, and grapefruit. This IPA pours a light golden yellow with a one-finger white head. The aroma is lightly grassy, grapefruit, light tropical fruit bitterness, and hoppy notes. The flavor is bitter and hoppy. There is grapefruit, passion fruit, and smoothness. This beer has a medium mouthfeel. Then this IPA finishes with fruitiness, bitterness, and some light herbal notes. The aftertaste is lighter on the grapefruit and passion fruit as it fades. There is some lingering bitterness. This is a good beer. Lord of the Hops New Zealand IPA is a B. I thought going into this beer that there would be more of a bold tropical fruit flavor to this. But that was decent. It did have a good amount of bitter hop flavor. I recommend you try Royal Bliss Brewing Co. Lord of the Hops New Zealand IPA. Please stay safe, be kind to each other, and remember to enjoy responsibly! Cheers!

Suffolk Punch Brewing Blue Daisy Pilsner

Posted on by Evan

Not far from where I live, within walking distance, is Winestore. They are primarily a wine store, but they have a very small selection of beers. There, I bought Suffolk Punch Brewing Blue Daisy Pilsner.  The Pilsner is 4.9% ABV. This beer pours yellow with a big two-finger white head. The aroma is very earthy, almost stinky, and yet crisp. The taste is crisp, earthy, and lightly hopped. It has an earthy, crisp, and light fruity flavor. The mouthfeel is light. This pilsner finishes earthy with a slight bitterness. The aftertaste is not as earthy, but it is crisp. Overall, I was not impressed with Blue Daisy Pilsner. So I give it a D. The smell was just bad, which made the taste not as good. I don’t recommend it, nor will I have it again. I don’t know what they did to this Pilsner. I guess it was the wrong mixture of hops and grains. No thank you, Suffolk Punch. Please stay safe, be kind to each other, and remember to enjoy responsibly! Cheers! 

Ōslō Brewing Oslove Passion Fruit Blonde Ale

Posted on by Evan

After cruising around Iceland and Norway. I took a train from Bergen, Norway, to Oslo, the capital. There I found a local beer from ōslō Brewing, Passion Fruit Blonde Ale. This beer is 4.7% ABV. This beer poured blonde/yellow with a two-finger white head. The aroma is crisp and fruity. It’s slightly more tropical. The taste is light on tropical passion fruit. This has a light mouthfeel. Then it finishes clean with a tropical taste. The aftertaste is faded passion fruit. Overall, this was good, interesting too. I give this beer a B+. The passion fruit was not as strong as I would have liked, and I am not a big fan of fruity pilsners/lagers. But this blonde was pretty good. I would recommend this one if you are in Oslo. I would have it again myself, as well as more from ōslō Brewing. Please stay safe, be kind to each other, and remember to enjoy responsibly! Cheers!

Trollbryggert

Posted on by Evan

I was recently on a Viking Cruise around Iceland, the Faroe Islands, and the eastern coast of Norway. While we were in the port of Alesund, Norway, we took a bus tour of the local area. We even took two ferries and had lunch at a local ski resort. Then we head not too far to the Trollbryeriet in Liabygda, Norway, for a tour of the brewery. They produce many different beers. They call the beer Slogen after a local mountain. After the short tour of the production facilities, we had a tasting of four beers. A Weizen, Pilsner, Brown Ale, Bock, and an IPA. The brewery isn’t very big, but they do produce 10,000 barrels a year. The pilsner was good, but could have been slightly better. It was clean and crisp. The brown ale (English Brown) was good. It was malted  and nutty. The Wiezen was very good; that might have been because it was first. It had a decent banana/clove taste. A slight fruity note, other than banana. The Bock was terrible; it tasted like it had gone bad and sour. The IPA was good; this was more like a West Coast IPA. It was fruity, bitter, and not overpowering.  Overall, this was a good set of beers minus the Bock. I do like Bock beer. This tour and tasting is a B. If you ever get to that part of Norway, go and try Trollbryeriet beers. Please stay safe, be kind to each other, and remember to enjoy responsibly! Cheers!

Ægir Bryggeri Rallar Amber Ale

Posted on by Evan

I love to try new things. I am currently sailing around Iceland, and on board, I had Ægir Bryggeri Rallar Amber Ale from Norway. This Amber Ale is 4.7% ABV from Flåm, Vestland, Norway. They use six different types of malts in this brew. But I couldn’t find what the six malts are. This amber ale pours dark reddish/amber with a one-finger faded tan head. The aroma is slight toffee, with some maltiness and nuts. The flavor is malty toffee, light chocolate, and nutty. This has a light and easy mouthfeel. The finish is faded malt and some light toffee. The aftertaste is light malts. This is not a great beer; it’s a D+. I think it is thin overall, flavor-wise. I wouldn’t have this one again, or should you. It’s interesting sounding. But it fell off once I tasted it. It is not overly strong. I did have an IPA from this brewery, but unfortunately I wasn’t given the can for a proper review. That was better, in fact. I’d give that West Coast-style IPA a B+. But I wish I could properly review. But their Amber Ale is not good. Please stay safe, be kind to each other, and remember to enjoy responsibly! Cheers! 

Brog Brugghuis Helga NR.69

Posted on by Evan

I try new things and go to new places. I am currently in Reykjavik, Iceland. I had a local beer Borg Brugghuis Helga NG.69. This is a Raspberry Sour at 4.7% ABV. This beer is brewed in Reykjavik. This sour pours a raspberry red color with a one-finger pink head. The aroma is slightly sour with nice raspberry notes. The taste is light on the sourness and there is a nice raspberry flavor. This beer has a light mouthfeel. Then this beer comes to a sour and tart raspberry flavor. The aftertaste is more tart than sour but this is a good sour beer overall. I give this one a B+. If you are in Iceland you should give it a try. Please stay safe, be kind to each other, and remember to enjoy responsibly! Cheers!

760 Craft Works Orange Card Session IPA

Posted on by Evan

I am quite fond of 760 Craft Works in Huntersville, North Carolina. They brew some delicious beers, and I have had just a few. This is Orange Card Session IPA, with 5.1% ABV. This sessionable IPA uses hops such as Citra, Idaho 7, Cascade, & Mosaic. I picked up Orange Card because the label caught my eye. I think it goes with the World Cup, or something like that. This beer pours orange with a two-finger white head. The aroma is citrus fruit, oranges, and bitterness. The flavor is a bit like candied tangerine, orange, and bitter/pine. The pine note is light at best, and I mostly taste a bitter citrus flavor, mostly sweet orange/tangerine. This beer has a medium mouthfeel. The finish is citrusy and bitter. It doesn’t taste overly bitter.  The aftertaste is candied oranges/tangerines. That does linger with a faded bitterness. The overall flavor doesn’t make this too sessionable, but it does have a lower ABV for an IPA. I don’t think I could have more than two and a half pints or forty ounces. You could say this is kind of sessionable ( a shorter drinking session). Anyway, I think Orange Card Session IPA is an A. If the flavor and mouthfeel were lighter, this would be an A+. I still think you should try this one. The flavor is delicious. Please stay safe, be kind to each other, and remember to enjoy responsibly! Cheers!

Westbrook Brewing Co. Whipped Pineapple Gose

Posted on by Evan

I am a huge fan of Westbrook Brewing Co. from Mt. Pleasant, South Carolina, and their Gose. This is Whipped Pineapple Gose, available from June to September. This 4% ABV Gose has CTZ hops and American Ale Yeast. It uses malts such as Acidulated and Pale Wheat. Lastly, there are adjuncts such as coriander, pineapple, sea salt, and vanilla. This beer pours a bright, cloudy yellow with a two-finger white head. The aroma is lightly sour, sweet, and pineapple-like. Taste is light, tart/sour, with pineapple notes and sweetness from the vanilla. This beer has a light salted flavor. The mouthfeel is light. It has a vanilla-coated pineapple finish. There is a slight saltiness and sourness to the finish as well. Aftertaste is a lingering vanilla with faded pineapple. This is very good; it gets an A from me. Overall, it is like a lightly salted vanilla pineapple. I recommend this one! Please stay safe, be kind to each other, and remember to enjoy responsibly! Cheers!