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The Beer News

Posted on by Evan

Here are this week’s  happenings in and around the Charlotte, North Carolina Area.

  • August 24th Thursday 3 pm-10 pm Birdsong Brewing Company is having a release party for its Autumn seasonal, Wake Up Porter.
  • August 28th Monday 11 am-10 pm Olde Mecklenburg Brewery is releasing its Mecktoberfest beer. 
  • September 4th Monday 2 pm-7 pm Free Range Brewing Funky Farm Day. Live Music, and beer. Free to the public. More information on Free Ranges Facebook page. 
  • September 16th Saturday 21 pm-8 pm Blue Blaze Brewing is having Oktoberfest. The brewery will have traditional German-Style beers and JJ’s Red Hots will be crafting a limited edition brat using Alpine Weisse Oktoberfest Ale. This brat will then be sold at their restaurants between September 16th through October 3rd. More information On Blue Blaze Brewing’s Facebook page.

Service Brewing Old Guard Bière De Garde

Posted on by Evan

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Service Brewing in Savannah Georgia a military themed brewery brews Old Guard Bière De Garde, 6.6% ABV. Old Gaurd is part of Service Brewing seasonal series. The brewer says that one of the greatest military honors is the privilege to serve with the 3rd U.S. Infantry, otherwise known as the Old Guard. In 1996 SGT (Sargent) Heather Johnsen woman to guard the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier proudly joined the ranks. Old Guard is brewed with their strain cultivated from honeycomb from their own brewery’s apiary or bee farm. house yeast st Old Guard pours a deep orange-copper color with a two-finger beige head that slowly fades down to some minimal lacing that gives nice sweet notes of ripe fruits, sweet malts, and some slight honey, that beckons you into the taste of more ripe fruits with nice sweet malts and honey. The honey is full on flavor with some malts swarming around it with little balancing effects. Old Guard has a nice sweet finish of honey with a sweet after taste that coats your mouth. Mouthfeel is on the fuller side but Old Guard is somewhat easy to drink. This Service Brewing Old Guard Bière De Garde is a B+. This beer might be too much flavor after about three or four. That holds this beer back that is otherwise tasty and something that I recommend trying. Cheers! Please enjoy responsibly! 

Unibroue Grande Réserve 17 Aged with French Oak

Posted on by Evan

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For some time now I have been looking for this Unibroue Grande Réserve 17, 10.0% ABV. This is a dark ale aged in French Oak and bottled refermented. This Ale was originally brewed in 2007 to celebrate the brewery’s 17th anniversary, and it was such a success that they kept brewing it. This particular bottled was bottled in 2015 making it two years old.  I picked this Unibroue Grande Réserve 17 up at Whole Foods. Unibroue Grande Réserve 17 pours a deep brown dark color with a two-finger beige head with nice retention giving off sweet brandy/wine notes with touches of nice toffee and slight caramel on the nose, leading into a taste of slightly alcoholic sweet brandy with notes of toffee, raisin, and caramel. This beer drink smoother than it should for a 10.0% beer. Which might be a little dangerous. Unibroue Grande Réserve 17 has slight boozy semi-sweet finish with some toffee and an aftertaste of slight semi-sweet alcohol brand notes. The mouth feel is full. Overall this Unibroue Grande Réserve 17 is good for a big beer, it is a definite A. Miss slightly on the boozy finish but only just. I highly recommend Unibroue Grande Réserve 17 and I will be going back to this lovely beer. Cheers! Please enjoy responsibly!   

The Beer News

Posted on by Evan

Here are this week happening in and around the Charlotte, NC area.

  • Sunday, August 19th LOSO Neighborhood, LOSO Neighborhood Block Party 11am-10pm, free admission. Yancy and Southside Dr.
  • August Saturday 19th 12 pm Triple C Brewing 5th Anniversary Block Party 
  • Monday, August 28th 11 am The Olde Mecklenburg Brewery Mecktoberfest Release.
  •  September 16th Saturday 12 pm-10 pm Sycamore Brewing. Join us this September for a Celebration of Fall & Pumpkin Beers! Featuring an amazing tap list of Seasonal Fall Beers including – ‘Gourd Have Mercy!’ Awesome Giveaways for the first 200 guests!!!
    Live Music on 2 Stages, Outdoor Pouring Stations, 5 Food Trucks, Very Good Times!!
    Bands:
    Of Good Nature
    PMA Positive Mental Attitude
    Late Night Special
    Colby Deitz Band
    Below the Belt
    And more!

Gizmo BrewWorks Lavender Kolsch

Posted on by Evan

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I just found a new local North Carolina brewery Gizmo BrewWorks. They haven’t been open very long, something like a quarter of a year. But I have heard that this new brewery in Raleigh, NC brews pretty wonderful beers. So I pick up this from Reids Fine Foods at South Park Mall, Union Lavender Kolsch, 5.1% ABV. The brewery says this is a good wedding season beer. I didn’t know a thing like that existed. Union Lavender Kolsch pours a somewhat clean and clear yellow color with a thin white quickly dissolving white head with very little left behind. The aroma perfumed with a slightly sweet floral note and some sweet crispness as well and gives you a similar taste. There is nice sweet crisp floral flavor but Union isn’t overly floral. I have had some beers brewed with lavender and they taste like you’re drinking perfume, this does not, but it does finish with a slightly sweet floral note that is also crisp and has a nice lingering after taste of the said Lavender, with a nice lighter mouth feel. Over all this was a good beer an A-. But if you were to have three the Lavender flavor would be a bit much, so two is enough to enjoy. Going into this beer the Kolsch drew me in and I was slightly hesitant about the Lavender part, but I gave it a try and was pleasantly surprised how well balanced it was. I recommend Gizmo BrewWorks Union Lavender Kolsch. Cheers! Please enjoy responsibly!       

The Beer News

Posted on by Evan

Here are this week news and happenings in and around the Charlotte North Carolina area.

  • Sunday, August 19th LOSO Neighborhood, LOSO Neighborhood Block Party 11am-10pm, free admission. Yancy and Southside Dr.
  • Thursday, August 10th 3pm-10pm Collaboration Release: Bastille Day Sour Saison with High Branch Brewing. We are closing down the street to celebrate our 5th Anniversary in style! This year’s music line up includes Jamorah with Special guest Shorty on Mado and Guitar, Mojo Ruckus, and Brushfire Stankgrass headlining! We will have food trucks, a special beer release, a huge tent, and a MISTING STATION to help beat the heat! The bar in the taproom will be open along with an outside bar and the bar in our new private events center across the street with its large bathrooms! More details coming soon No cover!!!!!!! 
  • August Saturday 19th 12pm Triple C Brewing 5th Anniversary Block Party 
  • Monday, August 28th 11am The Olde Mecklenburg Brewery Mecktoberfest Release.

Smaltz Brewing Company Slingshot Craft American Lager

Posted on by Evan

IMG_5221Craft beer drinkers tend to think that Lagers aren’t good and this may have some thing to with non-craft beers like Bud, Miller, Coors, etc… But I think that if you can brew a great Lager beer that is the true sign of a good brewer. Unlike a dark beer, there aren’t any bold flavors for the mistakes of the beer to hind behind, plus I enjoy a good lager. Here I have Smaltz Brewing Company in Clifton Park New York, Slingshot Craft American Lager, 5.3% ABV. Slingshot pours a golden yellow color with a one finger white head that fades rather quick but does give off slightly sweet aromas with some little fruit notes with some faint corn. Tates is much like you’d expect from a lager with slight sweetness like some light mixed fruit, there is a slight crispness with a very faint hop not on the back of the mouth. Slingshot finishes smooth with a subtle sweet note and has a refreshing after taste with a touch of a corn like sweetness. The mouth feel is light on Slingshot and overall this is an A- beer. Slingshot is a great craft lager but I think the sweetness needs to be toned down a notch and it would be even tastier. But I really enjoy it and I highly recommend this beer. It is an easy smooth drinking beer. Cheers! Please enjoy responsibly! 

Weyerbacher Brewing Co. Sexy Motherpucker Sour Ale

Posted on by Evan

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I don’t think I’ve had much from the Weyerbacher Brewing Co. but I think they are kind of popular on the east coast. Weyerbacher Brewing Co. in Easton Pennsylvania brews Sexy Motherpuck Sour Ale, 7.5% ABV, which I received from a Brewpublik delivery. This Sour ale pours a light brown hue with a thin beige one and a half finger head that doesn’t stick around for long and gives you a sour citrus aroma with light notes of some grape, slight plum, and cherry, but mostly citrus orange. Taste is really weird, it’s sour orange up front with tiny traces of red grape and with a tartness in the middle with some citrus notes and faint cherry. But the on the end or back of the mouth it has an off sour note that just gross, and continues on into the finish with more sour tart citrus leaving a bitter sour aftertaste that is just wrong and awful. The mouth feel is light to medium. This Weyebacher Sexy Motherpucker Sour Ale is an F. I like sour beers and I like dark sour beer as well but this like two different kinds of sour ales trying to be one and they aren’t working. Do not try this at all. It’s not good at all. Cheers! Please enjoy responsibly!

The Unknown Brewing Co. Dinner at Babalu

Posted on by Evan

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Yesterday evening Babalu Tacos & Tapas had a collaborative dinner with The Unknown Brewing Co., four courses paired with four Uknow Brewing Co. beers. The restaurant sat us at a bar table with all the other people in attendance, sitting at this type of table with a barstool is not so comfortable a table would have been more comfortable. The dinner started off with a snack of Charcuterie, house made sausage, Spanish cheese, beer bread, and paired with Unknowns Pre Game Session Ale. This beer is categorized at as a Pale Ale.

 

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Pre Game Session Ale, 4.25 ABV

This beer is smooth and easy to drink. It is like a better craft version of Bud, Miller, Coors beers. it has a very light citrusy smooth flavor to it, and didn’t over power the any of the snacks. The first course Serrano and Melon; cantaloupe, red onion marmalade, whipped queso fresco was paired with Let’s Get Tropical IPA.

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Let’s Get Tropical IPA, 5.8% ABV

This American IPA was slightly hoppy with nice pineapple, mango, melon, a little bit of grapefruit and some faint coconut on the end and finish. I see why this was paired with this, it was the melon in the dish and the melon flavor of the beer. Nice touch and not a bad IPA but I’ve had some that are better. The second-course was Seared Scallops, sea beans, burgundy truffle, water melon radish paired with Hospitali-Tea Amber Ale.

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Hospitali-Tea Amber Ale, 5.6% ABV

I have had this before and very briefly talked about this beer in a review of the South Blvd Harris Teeter bar. In a nutshell, it’s like iced tea with some honey on the end. It has some nice sweetness to it. I found this beer to be quite good as was the second course. The third course was dry-aged ribeye, mole Amarillo, roasted vegetables, honey garlic, purple Peruvian chips paired with over The Edge American IPA.

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Over The Edge American IPA, 6.4% ABV

This is there more hop forward IPA and you can definitely taste the hops on this one. It’s a big full hop flavor up front and slightly mellow though the rest of the mouth and finishing with a big hoppy note that is on the drier said. Not a bad IPA but there is a lot of hoppy flavor to this beer with some lighter grapefruit and earthy pine notes. I think this could use more of the earthy pine and grapefruit notes. Now the dessert was chocolate pot de creme, burnt orange syrup, Grand Marnier pearls, and thyme paired Unknown Craft Ginger Ale cocktail, which was Jack Daniels, muddled orange and Unknown Craft ginger ale, which is non-alcoholic. This Ginger Ale is great with bourbon and rum and great all on it owen. Much better than all the ginger ales you find at the grocery store. This isn’t so sweet like the average ginger ale. 

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Unknown Craft Ginger Ale Cocktail

Overall the whole beer dinner was good but could have been better, the food wasn’t bad but I’ve had better, and the beer was good. Sit us at a table next time. Cheers! please enjoy responsibly! 

 

 

 

 

 

   

 

  

 

 

Terrapin Beer Co. T-Time Berliner Weisse

Posted on by Evan

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This  I am fond of the Terrapin Beer Co in Athens Georgia. they brew great beers. This Terrapin, T-Time Berliner Weisse, 4.0% ABV and only 5 IBUs is a German Style Ale with Maya Tea and lemon. I think the idea here with this is golfers lemonade. T-Time pours a yellow color with a thin one and a half finger fizzy white head that quickly fades into a thin tiny halo, giving off a tart lemony aroma with a faint hint of tea. Taste is similar to its aroma, there is nice tart lemon with a light tea note up front that is slightly semi-sweet with a light tartness in the middle that finishes with a light tart lemon note give you a tart lemonade aftertaste. I found there to be a small amount of tea on this beer. So I give this an A-. It’s a nice touch on a refreshing style. But I think Terrapin needs to stick to brewing beer and not puns. So many bad gold puns on this can. But that doesn’t take away from how this beer taste. That’s the art and or marketing department fault. This T-Time is an easy refreshing beer that I highly recommend you try. Cheers! Please enjoy responsibly!