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NoDa Brewing Co. Slurp Surfin West Coast India Pale Ale

Posted on by Evan


Slurp Surfin is a West Coast India Pale Ale produced by NoDa Brewing Co. and is part of the Slurp Series of IPAs. This IPA is 6.5% and is dry-hopped with Mosaic, Simcoe, and Centennial hops. NoDa Brewing uses the same mash hopes and Thiol (a type of yeast) as the Lil Slurp and mash hops; Experimental 177701. Mosiac Incognito is used in the whirlpool. This beer pours a yellow color with a three-and-a-quarter fluffy white head. The head is very slowly fading. The aroma is pineapple, grapefruit, tangerine, orange, bitterness, and light pine. The flavor is also tropical pineapple, tangerine, orange, and grapefruit. There is a good amount of bitter notes there. This beer has a lighter feel in the mouth. This IPA has a tropical fruity bitter finish. The aftertaste is bitter with tropical fruits. Slurp Surfin is a delicious beer and one that is an A. I enjoyed the tropical bitter flavors. So go find NoDa Brewing Co. Slurp Surfin, and the rest of the Slurp Series beers. I have previously reviewed the rest of the series. Please stay safe, be kind to each other, and remember to enjoy responsibly! Cheers!

Brouwerij St. Bernardus Christmas Ale

Posted on by Evan

Christmas is coming soon, and it might be too early for a Christmas beer. But here is St. Bernardus Christmas Ale. This beer is produced by Brouwerij St. Bernardus in Watuo, Belgium. This Christmas Quadruple ale is 10% ABV. St. Bernardus uses a unique yeast that dates back to 1946. The beer pours a dark brown color with a one-and-a-half-finger sticky beige head. The aroma is of Aniseed, dried fruits, sweetness, and light caramel. The flavor is on the rich side. The beer tastes sweet, dried fruits, boozy, roasted chestnuts, and hints of chocolate. This beer feels full in your mouth. This ale finishes with a little boozy, sweet, nutty, and light fruitiness. The aftertaste is semi-sweet and boozy with some light fruity and nut notes. This beer is tasty and sneaks up on you. Yes, it is on the boozy side. It does not feel strong on alcohol. St. Bernadues Christmas Ale is an A+. I highly recommend this one. It has no flaws and it is delicious. Please stay safe, be kind to each other, and remember to enjoy responsibly! Cheers!

Triple C Brewing Co. x Birdsong Brewing Co. Three in Flight New Zealand-Style Kellerbier Lager

Posted on by Evan

You don’t see Kellerbier Lagers from New Zealand. But Three in Flight is one. This beer is a collaboration between Triple C Brewing Co. & Birdsong Brewing Co., both here in Charlotte. This Kellerbier Lager is 4.8% ABV and has Motueka, Nelson Sauvin, and Nectaron hops. This beer pours a yellow color with a two-finger white head. The aroma is light hops, light sweetness, and light white bread. The flavor is lightly sweet, bitterness on the middle and back of the mouth, spicy, and clean. This beer has a light feeling in the mouth. This beer finishes with a bitter spiced note. The aftertaste is lackluster bitterness but not overly bitter. There is a bit of a sweetness in the aftertaste. This beer starts off well, then just fizzles out on average, making Three in Flight a C grade. It sounded interesting on the label, being a New Zealand-style Kellerbier Lager. But it is not great nor it’s bad.

Hardywood Craft Brewery Great Return IPA

Posted on by Evan

Hardywood Craft Brewery in Richmond, Virginia produces Great Return IPA. This IPA is 7.5% and uses Apollo, Cascade, Centennial, Columbus, and Simcoe hops. This IPA pours yellow with a one-finger white head. The aroma is bright, citrus, piney, and malted. The flavor is piney, citrusy, hoppy, and smooth. This beer is lighter on the mouth. Then it has a bitter hop finish. Then you get an aftertaste of piney grapefruit. The bitterness is stronger in the aftertaste than when it initially hits the tongue. This is just average in my opinion, so I give this a C. Nothing bad and nothing really stands out. This IPA is something that you can drink a few of without having the flavor overpower your mouth. The bitter aftertaste is a little off but not terrible. Great Return is not the worst IPA I’ve had. Please stay safe, be kind to each other, and remember to enjoy responsibly! Cheers!

Cabarrus Brewing Co. Rocky River IPA

Posted on by Evan

This IPA hopped with Comet, Citra, and Mosaic hops is Rocky River IPA from Cabarrus Brewing Co. in Concord, North Carolina, which is thirty-five minutes outside Charlotte. I first had this IPA at the Charlotte Motor Speedway during the NASCAR Bank of American Rovel 400. I thought I should find some for a review. I did. This beer is 6.5% ABV. The brewery is named for the county in which Concord is located. This IPA pours a light yellow with a one-and-a-half-finger white head. The aroma is grass, light citrus, bitter, and lightly malted. The taste is grassy, bitter, light citrus, hoppy, and with a touch of sweetness. This beer has a medium feel on the mouth. Then this IPA has a bitty/hoppy, grassy citrus finish. The aftertaste is light grass and light grapefruit. This is a fabulous IPA that I’d say is A+. The grassy citrus is great and this beer doesn’t overpower your tastebuds. Rocky River IPA is a beer that you need to have. Please stay safe, be kind to each other, and enjoy responsibly! Cheers!

Schlenkerla Dopple Bock Oak Smoked

Posted on by Evan

Coming from Bramberg Germany this Dopple Bock of Double Bock is Schlenkla Dopple Bock Oak Smoked. This beer is 8% ABV and the malts are smoked with Oak instead of Beechwood. This smoked Doppel Bock uses Hallertau hops. This beer pours a brownish color with a two-finger beige head. The aroma is smokey, malted, and sweet. The flavor is smokey, sweet, malty, and lightly rich. This beer has a fuller feeling in the mouth. Then this beer has a smoked malt finish with light sweetness. Then comes a light smokey aftertaste with touches of malted flavors. This Smoked Dopple Bock is an A+. I’ve had the Marzen variety from Schlenkerla, and this is just as good, with a bit of a deeper overall flavor. I really suggest you try this and all of Schlenkerla’s beers. This beer is not heavy on the smoke flavor. It has just the right amount to make this a delicious beer. Please stay safe, be kind to each other, and remember to enjoy responsibly! Cheers!

Birdsong Brewing Co. Party Starter Festbier Marzen Lager

Posted on by Evan

Here is another Festbier. This is Party Starter from Birdsong Brewing Co. This seasonal Marzen Lager is 5% ABV. This lager pours a deep orange/copper color with a one-and-a-half finger beige head. The aroma is semi-sweet with toffee, malts, and bread. The flavor is toffee, malty flavors, bread, light sweetness, and crisp/smooth. This Marzen lager had a medium feel on the mouthfeel. This beer has a smooth and crisp finish with some sweetness. The aftertaste is a lingering of toffee and bread. This is a good Marzen Lager. I give this a B-. But Burial Beer Fest is better than this, but I recommend them both. I suggest you have this one, then have Burial Beer Fest and have your own comparison. This Birdsong Festbier is lighter than some Festbiers I have, and that is not bad. Please stay safe, be kind to everyone, and remember to enjoy responsibly! Cheers!

Burial Beer Fest Oktoberfest Lager

Posted on by Evan

It is fest beer season and time for Oktoberfest. This beer is an Oktoberfest Lager from Burial Beer called Fest. This beer is a seasonal beer that is 5.9% ABV. This lager beer pours a golden orange color with a two-finger white head. The aroma is lightly honey-sweet and malty. The flavor is sweet, caramel, honey, malty, and crisp. This lager is medium feeling on the mouth. Then this beer finishes with a malty sweet and crisp flavor. The aftertaste is malt and caramel. Overall, this Fest beer is not overly sweet. The malt flavors take some of the sweet edge off. This beer is good, A+ good. I would not pass up the opportunity to drink this. All the flavors are well-balanced and delicious. I could have several of these before I would get tired of the flavor, and you will too. Please stay safe, be kind to each other, and remember to enjoy responsibly! Cheers!

Edmunds Oast Brewing Co. Cereal For Dinner

Posted on by Evan

I first reviewed this beer, Cereal For Dinner, back in 2020 at the end of May. I thought I would review this beer again because I keep seeing this everywhere. This beer is by Edmunds Oast Brewing Co. in Charleston, South Carolina. This beer comes in at 5.5% ABV and has almonds, vanilla, Lactose, and coconut. This ale pours yellow with a two-finger steady head. The aroma is vanilla-sweet and nutty. The flavor is also vanilla, coconut, and smooth. The flavor of this beer is nutty but slightly nuttier than its aroma. This beer feels light on the mouth. Then you come to a finish of sweet vanilla nuttiness with some fake or artificial coconut. The aftertaste is sweet and nothing more. This beer is not overly sweet overall. That’s good because blonde beer that is sweet shouldn’t be. This ale has the right amount of sweetness with a bit of a nutty flavor. I give Cereal For Dinner a B+. This beer has plain vanilla and not a more exotic type of vanilla. If it did, I would probably rate this higher. I recommend that you drink this beer. It is good. This beer is good enough to have a few. Please stay safe, be kind to each other, and remember to enjoy responsibly! Cheers!

Big Boss Brewing Company Harvest Time Pumpkin Ale

Posted on by Evan

Pumpkin Beer is a fall beer that has grown in popularity over the years. More and more breweries are producing pumpkin beer. I’m not a big fan of the whole pumpkin-flavored stuff let alone pumpkin beer. This particular pumpkin beer is Harvest Time Pumpkin Ale. This is produced in Raleigh, North Carolina by Big Boss Brewing Company. This beer is 5.5% ABV. Pumpkin beer is usually only round in October, but some come to the store shelves near the end of August. Thanks, Souther Tier Pumpking. This ale pours a deep orange with two fingers of off-white head. The aroma of this pumpkin beer is of pumpkin spice, cinnamon, and malts. The flavor is pumpkin spice, cinnamon light clove, sweetness, and malts., This beer is somewhat light on the mouth. Then it has a pumpkin spice syrup finish. Then it has a semi-sweet cinnamon-spiced aftertaste. This Harvest Time is not good, it’s a D-. I didn’t enjoy this nor am I recommending it. If you do like pumpkin beer then try it. But I’m not going to tell you too. It just tastes so fake and none of the flavors go well with each other, and as it warms it gets worse. Please stay safe, be kind to each other, and remember to enjoy responsibly! Cheers!