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The Beer News

Posted on by Evan

Here are this week’s news and events happening in the Charlotte, NC area!

  • Thursday, October 11th. IPA Series #7: So Fresh Wet Hop IPA. Birdsong Brewing Company. 3 pm-10 pm. We jumped at the opportunity to have FRESH, Idaho 7 Hops overnighted to us for the latest beer in our IPA Series, So Fresh Wet Hop IPA! With So Fresh, we’re taking advantage of the harvest season and making this one a wet/fresh hop IPA! We’re featuring the Idaho 7 hop which is the highlighted hop from Paradise City Session IPA and is known for it’s tropical, papaya, and piney characteristics! Hope you can join us for the release on Thursday, 10/11 at 3pm!
    There’s no time to waste, So Fresh is meant to be enjoyed today! With fragrant tropical fruit aromas and notes of pine, Idaho 7 hops star in this specialty wet hop IPA. This is a beer meant to be consumed fresh, so drink it as soon as possible!
  • Thursday, October 11th. Founders Speciality Flight Night. Flying Saucer Charlotte. 6 pm-11 pm. Founders Flight Night featuring Better Half, Harvest Wet Hopped Ale, Backwoods Bastard, and 4 Giants Imperial IPA
  • Saturday, October 13th. 4 yr Anniversary. Sugar Creek Brewing. 11 am-11 pm. Its Sugar Creek Brewing Companies 4 year anniversary and we’ve decided to team up with LOCAL vendors to throw a FALL FEST. Come hangout Saturday 10/13/18 all day long as we bring you Live Music, Multiple beer releases throughout the day, Food Trucks and shop some local vendors or maybe snag a PUMPKIN for Halloween! It’s our 4 Year and we are very grateful to be a part of this beautiful city and the people that make it that way.
  • Sunday, October 14th. HBC Charlotte: Beers 4 Equality. Birdsong Brewing Company. 12 pm-4 pm. Tickets at act.hbc.org. Join HRC Charlotte for Beers 4 Equality at Birdsong Brewing Co.!
    TICKETS:
    Online: $25
    At the door: $30
    All tickets include an exclusive BEERS 4 EQUALITY Souvenir Pint Glass, 2 beer tickets, and an annual HRC membership or renewal.
    All ages and dogs are welcome.
    Join us for the Panthers game. Music Provided by DJ Little Betty before kick-off and during halftime.
  • Tuesday, October 16th. Pint Night w/ Clown Shoes Brewing. The Casual Pint Rivergate. 6 pm-8 pm. Although the name may make you think otherwise, Clown Shoes Brewing Company’s brews are no joke! They will be joining us on the 16th for a Pint Night you will surely want to be here for. 

Catawba Brewing Co. White Zombie White Ale

Posted on by Evan

Catawba Brewing Co, White Zombie White Ale, 5.1% ABV purchased from Pop The Top Bottle Shop has breweries in Morganton, Asheville, and here in Charlotte North Carolina. White Zombie White Ale pours a deep yellow color with a two finger white foamy head that slowly fades into a white halo giving off aromas of orange, peel and fruit, with hints of sweet spiced notes that take you to a taste of orange sweet/spiced flavor with a bit of a mild yet light yeast Ed notes towards the back of the tongue with a nice finish of orange coriander and a light sweet spiced aftertaste with a medium mouthfeel that is refreshing. Catawba Brewing Co. White Zombie White Ale is a B, it has a good white ale flavor to it without being overwhelming or heavy, it is slightly easy drinking but it does sit a bit heavy in your stomach after a few but the flavor is still drinkable at that point. I recommend Catawba Brewing Co. White Zombie White Ale. Cheers! Please enjoy responsibly!

Wrightsville Beach Brewery Puppy Drum Pale Ale

Posted on by Evan

Wrightsville Beach Brewery Puppy Drum Pale Ale, 4.9% ABV is another purchase from Pop The Top Bottle Shop here in Charlotte, and Puppy Drum is brewed in Wilmington North Carolina and pours a deep copper color with a one and half finger white head that slowly fades into aromas of bitter crisp dry notes with a dry flavor in front and middle of the mouth that become a bit more bitter on the end with a bit of crisp bitterness to it with a nice bitter finish and a bitter dry yet crisp aftertaste with a lighter mouthfeel. Not a bad pale ale, but the bitterness grows a bit as Puppy Drum warms. Wrightsville Beach Brewery Puppy Drum Pale Ale is a B- beer, it does not really blow me away with its flavor but it’s a good pale ale that doesn’t overpower your taste buds and one that you could drink a few of and yes it’s one you should go out and try. Cheers! Please enjoy responsibly!

Birdsong Brewing Company O.P.P. Pale Ale with Pineapple

Posted on by Evan

Birdsong Brewing Company O.P.P. Pale Ale with Pineapple, 5.8% ABV, another purchase from Pop The Top Bottle Shop ands is brewed with Simcoe, and Cascade hops. O.P.P. (Other Peoples Pineapple) pours a hazy yellow with an almost two finger creamy white head that stays cream with nice cream lacing that give off a slight bitter tropical aroma with little to no pineapple notes that flow in to a taste of light fruity tropical flavors with not much pineapple with a bit of a creamy texture and a sharp bitter note in the middle and on the back of the mouth that finishes a little creamy with a sharp bitter fruity note with a bitter light fruit aftertaste with a light yet creamy mouthfeel. This beer advertised that it was tropical with pineapple and I really didn’t get any of that. But what I did get was okay, C+. I always like Birdsong Brewing beers but this was slightly off their mark, and yes I might have O.P.P. again and probably recommend this pale ale but not if you like pineapple. Cheers! Please enjoy responsibly!

Throwback Thursday: Sierra Nevada Sidecar Orange Pale Ale

Posted on by Evan

Originally posted March 13th, 2017

I love oranges so would I like this Sierra Nevada Sidecar Orange Pale Ale, 5.3% ABV? Well I like the original Sierra Nevada Pale Ale. So lets see! Sierra Nevada Sidecar is a newer year round offering. Sierra Nevada Sidecar pours a light top medium copper color with a two and a half finger head of white that fades at a steady pace leaving behind some minimal lacing. The aroma is orange/orange juice of course with orange peel, orange seeds. There is a faint pine yet earthy notes. Taste is much the same as it smells on the nose, there is the orange/ orange juice, orange peel and seeds with a pale ale earth and slight pine on the back of the mouth. But this Sidecar is more orange than anything. The mouth feel is light to slightly medium and finishes with a faint bitter orange flavor that leaves the same juicy after taste that lingers until you take another sip. Overall Sierra Nevada Sidecar orange Pale Ale is great, it get an A. It has a big orange flavor with a little bit of pale ale flavors towards the end that make it a great drinking beer. Sierra Nevada Sidecar is something that you’d want again and again. The flavor does not overpowering your palate. It has the right amount of balance to it. I do like Sierra Nevada Sidecar Orange Pale Ale, and I recommend it! Cheers! Please enjoy responsibly!

The Beer News

Posted on by Evan

Here are this week’s news and event happening in the Charlotte, NC area!

  • Wednesday, October 3rd. Blood Mountain Blonde Ale -Pilot Batch Release. Triple C Brewing Company. 4 pm. This is a refreshing and easy drinking blonde ale that also has additions of vanilla and strawberries in the secondary. The vanilla gives the beer a smooth, creamy mouthfeel that also enhances the subtle strawberry flavor in this blonde ale.
    32 oz Crowler fills & 64 oz Growler fills available in the taproom.
    @bleubarnbistro will be out on the patio for dinner!    🍻 

  • Thursday, October 4th. Tap Takeover by OMB. Brass Tap 11 am-10 pm. 

  • Thursday, October 4th. Olde Hickory Brewing Tap Takeover. Carolina Beer Temple Charlotte. 6 pm-10 pm. Join us Thursday (Oct 4th) for an evening with Olde Hickory Brewery! We will be featuring several tasty beers from them and discounted pints and flights will be available all day long! The tap list is still being determined so please stay tuned. See you at the Temple!

  • Friday, October, 5th. Cousins Maine Lobster at Birdsong! Birdsong Brewing Co. 4:30 pm- 9 pm. Back by popular demand! Cousins Maine Lobster, as seen on Shark Tank, will here at Birdsong Brewing October 5th serving up their famous Maine Lobster from 4:30-9pm! ***Update: We will not have trivia on this night.

  • Friday, October 5th. Sticky When Wet IPA Release. NoDa Brewing Company. 2 pm-10 pm. Join us for the release of our wet-hopped brew, Sticky When Wet. We brew this beer just ONE day after the hops are harvested… so you know it’s as fresh and sticky as it can possibly get! This wet-hopped beer has an assertive bitterness, bright aroma, and flavors of peach and grapefruit that derive from heavy additions of Citra and Mosaic hops. Sitting at 6.3%, this brew is one you don’t want to miss.
    While you’re here for the release, be sure to grab some grub from TIN Kitchen starting at 5 pm, enjoy a free brewery tour at 6 pm, and stick around for live music from 7-9 pm.

  • Saturday, October 6th. Lenny Boy Q and Brew. Lenny Boy Brewing Co. 11 am- 11 pm. Q & Brew is a monthly event at the Lenny Boy Taproom. The first Saturday of every month we have live music, new beer, and kombucha releases, and fun vendors on-site. And of course, local BBQ smoked on-site 🍻
    Saturday, October 6th.
    Free live music from 3 – 6pm with The Remarks     🎸
    The Hunter’s Wife will be smoking up some amazing BBQ all-day.
    Menu:
    Brisket tacos w/ Pico de Gallo,
    Charro beans
    and Potato Salad

  • Saturday, October 6th. Sycamore 4 Year Anniversary! Sycamore Brewing Company. 12 pm-10 pm. We’ve changed a lot over the last few years and we’re only just getting started!
    To thank you for your support we’re throwing one hell of a party!! Come out and celebrate!
    Special beer releases, Giveaways,
    2 Stages with Live Music all day, Food Trucks!
    It’s going down!!
    *No Cover Charge!*
    Live music by:
    Porch 40
    PMA Positive Mental Attitude
    The Company Stores
    Falconheart
    Pluto for Planet
    and Atlas Road Crew (A.R.C)!!!
    Food By:
    Papi Queso Food Truck
    Gyro Twins Truck
    OooWee BBQ
    Baltimore Crab Cake Company – Charlotte
    Special Vendors:
    Glory Days Apparel
    Hubert’s Lemonade
    Shimmer Down GLITTER!

  • Sunday, October 7th. Monkey-Mosa Brunch. Brewers at 4001 Yancy. 11 am- 2 pm. Sundays were MADE for brunchin’ with the crew, but have you brunched Monkey-Mosa style? We’re bringing another piece of Victory Beer to the Queen City…hands down one of the greatest beer concoctions of all time!
    Join us on October 7th for Golden Monkey, Sour Monkey, and Sour Monkey Remix beermosas at Charlotte’s first edition of MONKEY-MOSA BRUNCH! Grab a table with your game day gang, enjoy brunch and watch the Panthers vs. Giants with us! Tag your #TasteBuds
    Check out the menu!
    Monkey Bread appetizer
    Sour Monkey French Toast Casserole w/ Maple Crumble
    Sausage and Egg Skillet w/ Crab and Golden Monkey Hollandaise
    Reservations for Monkey-Mosa brunch can be made here: brewersat4001yancey.com/reservations/ 

  • Sunday, October 7th. Brewers at 4001 Yancy adoption event.  Brewers at 4001 Yancy. 4 pm. Come out and join us at the awesome Brewers at 4001 Yancy adoption event! We’ll be repeating this event so this is just the first team-up between US! Come to meet our babies and relax on a great Sunday!

  • Tuesday, October 9th. NoDable Release: AIGI Winning Beer. NoDa Brewing Company. 4 pm-9 pm. Every single week, we release a brand new “NoDable” beer on Tuesday. This week’s brew comes from the winner of the AIGA’s Beer & Branding competition! We’ll be announcing the winner and their brew during the event.
    While you’re here, be sure to try a few of our 25+ brews and some TIN Kitchen for dinner. And, don’t forget you can take this week’s NoDable and many of our other beers to-go in a crowler!   

Mikkeller Beer Hallo Ich Bin Berliner Weisse (Pineapple)

Posted on by Evan

Pick up Mikkeller Beer Hallo Ich Bin Berliner Weisse (Pineapple), 3.7% ABV from Pop The Top Craft Beer Shop here in Charlotte this weekend. The gypsy brewers Mikkeller Beer brew this with lots of different fruits and I’ve had their Passion Fruit before and I picked up the blood orange verity. Hallo Ich Bin Berliner Weisse (Pineapple) pours a bright hazy yellow with a two finger quickly fading head that leaves very little lacing and gives off a tart sweet fruit pineapple aroma that leads into a taste of nice tart tropical pineapple with a touch of sweetness and a slight sour note on the back of the mouth with a nice tart fruity finish and a slightly sour tropical pineapple aftertaste with a light mouthfeel. This Hallo Ich Bin Berliner Weisse (Pineapple) does not have a big pineapple presence but it’s still tasty and worth a B. The tart notes come in right after you get a hit of pineapple flavor that keeps the pine from really shinning though. Overall a good tasty beer but just could have a little more pineapple, and this is one I would recommend trying. Cheers! Please enjoy responsibly!

Throwback Thursday: Miami Brewing Co. Shark Bait

Posted on by Evan

Originally posted March 16th, 2015.

One of my favorite styles of beer the Wheat beer is also the first style I tied when I was getting into beer. This style is probably one of the most popular styles out there. Well, at least that is what I believe. Wheat style has a few substyles such as Dunkle, bock, and hefe, unfiltered, and filtered. This beer before us is Miami Brewing Co. Shark Bait Wheat Beer with mango juice, 5.3% ABV. Miami Brewing Co. is a relatively new brewery. There have been around since only 2011. Miami brewing isn’t located in Miami but they aren’t too far from it in Homestead Florida. Shark Bait pours a bright gold color with an almost one finger head the really dissipates quickly. I found plenty of light streaming through the glass with lots of great carbonation bubbles. The aroma on Shark Bait is nice with a fun bubblegum scent. I guess that is the combination of wheat and mango juice. The taste is much the same with a nice bubblegum flavor with faint wheat notes and a little mango, but mostly I get bubble gum throughout. This Shark Bait Wheat Beer is refreshing with a light mouthfeel. The finish is smooth and sweet with a bubble gum flavor. The aftertaste is a little fruit with tropical mango and still bubble gum but a little lighter than before. I really enjoy Miami Brewing Shark Bait Wheat Beer It’s a solid A. I liked the mixture of wheat and mango and the bubblegum flavor that I got off it. That was great and interesting. There is nothing I could find wrong with this beer. I recommend trying Miami Brewing Co. Shark Bait Wheat Beer. Go and try it for yourself. Cheers! Please enjoy responsibly!

The Beer News

Posted on by Evan

Here are this week’s news and event happening in around the Charlotte, NC area!

  • Wednesday, September 26th. Wicked Weed and Blackfinn Tasting. 6:30 pm-8:30 pm. Blackfinn Ameripub. Tickets at eventbrite.com ($20). Wicked Weed and Blackfinn join together to provide a relaxed atmosphere upstairs for guests to enjoy a curated food/beer menu. Tickets are $20 and include a welcome toast along with four small plate food stations paired with exclusive beers from Wicked Weed to enjoy at your own pace. This event is great for groups & team building – group pricing is available!
  • Wednesday, September 26th. September After Hours. Sycamore Brewing. 5:30 pm-7:30 pm Tickets at businessleadersofchartlotte.com. Please join your Friends from the Business Leaders of Charlotte (BLOC) on September 26th for Charlotte’s premiere networking event for Professionals. Everyone is welcome to attend this event and we encourage you all to bring a guest. Bring plenty of business cards! This is a stop on the 2018 BLOC Brewery Tour, so come prepared to network and make some great connections! 
  • Thursday, September 27th. Sierra Nevada Oktoberfest Sampling. Duckworth’s Grill & Taphouse Ballantyne. 6 pm-8 pm. Sierra Nevada Oktoberfest Sampling – Oktoberfest, Kellerweis & Pale Ale on draft! We will have a rep on hand for sampling and giveaways like Sierra Nevada Oktoberfest Mugs.
    Best of all, we’re celebrating Sierra Nevada with $4 Oktoberfest and a Text 2 Win contest for two tickets to Sierra Nevada Oktoberfest in Mills River!
  • Thursday, September 27th. Yeast Expected: A Beer and Pizza Pairing Dinner. Mama Ricotta’s. 6 pm-8 pm. Tickets via Eventbrite.com. Join Mama Ricotta’s and NoDa Brewing Company as they bring you your two favorite gluten-filled foods: beer and pizza. The four-course dinner will include a different style of pizza and new beer per course. Meet the chef and brewer, and take the opportunity to ask them questions about the beer and pizza-making process. If you agree there’s not much better than putting beer and pizza together, you’re right. Tickets aren’t like pizza slices, no one will ask you before getting the last one, so purchase today.
  • Friday, September 28th. Teleporter Can Release. The Unknown Brewing Company. 5 pm-11 pm. TELEPORTER is back IN CANS Friday, September 28th in the taproom! Tele-Porter is a 7.2% robust porter with rich grain bill and dark malts that we brew with cocoa nibs from French Broad Chocolates, milk sugar and aromatic coffee roasted by our friends at Enderly Coffee Company. These ingredients give this beer a wonderful nose of coffee and chocolate, a creamy tan head, and rich mocha taste.
  • Friday, September 28th. Raspberry Stout Release. NoDo Brewing Company. 4 pm-10 pm. Join us for the release of a new raspberry Stout on draft! This deliciously chocolaty/raspberry 7% ABV brew is just what you need to ease you into the cooler weather this fall. As always, TIN Kitchen will be here serving up tasty grub, there will be a free 6 pm tour, and live music will begin at 7 pm! 
  • Saturday, September 29th. LUCKy Camper Session IPA Release. Triple C Brewing Company. 12 pm-10 pm. We brewed this session IPA for a private event with Camp LUCK but made enough to share in our taproom too! Added bonus $1 from each pint sold benefits their mission to encourage, comfort and empower those affected by congenital heart disease and to provide a healthy, worry-free (medically supervised) camp environment focused on nurturing the development of Lucky Unlimited Cardiac Kids.
    New Wrap Order will be on sight and we have live music from The Dan Staton Band from 5-8!
  • Saturday, September 29th. GIANT Release. Lenny Boy Brewing Co. 11 am-11 pm. We got together with our amazing friends at Carolina Bauernhaus Ales to bring you, Giant. Giant is a loveable 3.5% a.b.v. “small bier,” born 100% from the Piedmont of the Carolinas. We used our Lenny Boy Brewing Co. house wild cultures along with Riverbend Malt House barley, locally grown wheat, and 2lbs of Carolina Bauernhaus Ales homegrown, freshly-dried, Cascade hops to bring you this specialty brew. Don’t be fooled by Giant’s small stature though; like the late Carolina Bauernhaus Ales canine mascot for whom this beer is named, Giant is small and smooth to the touch, but watch out… He’s bitter and a bit tart, and just may bite. All collaborations at Carolina Bauernhaus and Lenny Boy are a welcomed exchange of culture, both figuratively and literally. Sharing brewing philosophy with the like-minded, hyper-local-inspired breweries that inspire us is what collaboration is all about.
    This is a small batch collab – come out and try Giant while it lasts.
  • Monday, October 1st. Tap Takeover by OMB. Brass Tap South End. 11 am-10 pm. 
  • Tuesday, October 2nd. Urban Hop Project Fresh Hop IPA Release! Triple C Brewing Company. 4 pm-9 pm. We had our largest harvest to date at 33.4 lbs, but we scaled volume way down to get as much hop flavor as possible!!! All 33.4 lbs of Cascade hops went into the Whirlpool producing an amazing melon, cantaloupe, hoppy dankness. Dry hopped with our second smaller brewery grown Cascade Harvest. This beer is a truly unique ode to North Carolina with 100% brewery grown Cascade Hops and NC Grown Riverbend Malt House Malts.
    Draft and 32oz crowlers will be for sale. Bleu Barn Bistro has dinner covered. 

Foothills Brewing Tangled Vine Berry Rosé Ale

Posted on by Evan

Purchased Foothills Brewing Tangled Vine Berry Rosé, 4.4% ABV from my local Harris Teeter grocery store in a six-pack. Tangled Vine is part of a trend in the beer and wine industry where Rose style beers and wine is very popular at the moment and is brewed cranberries, sour cherries, and strawberries. Tangled Vine pours light pink almost orange hued color with a half finger white head that quickly fades into a very little halo giving off aromas off tart strawberry fruit that is a bit sour that then leads you to a dry tart strawberry sour taste that has a very small sweet note on the back of the mouth that finishes dry with strawberry tart notes and a dry tart strawberry fruit aftertaste with a light mouthfeel. Overall this does taste like Rosé and this would be something I recommend giving to anyone that is more of a wine drinker but would like to have a beer, and with that I find Foothills Brewing Tangled Vine Berry Rosé Ale to be a C. It has very light flavors that aren’t bad but not the best and while it is refreshing and light the flavors aren’t that memorable. It would be a beer I’d recommend but not one you need to try as soon as possible. Cheers! Please enjoy responsibly.